RWBY Slippers
by The Brutal Legend
Summary: Just another story filled with the same characters you know and love. Though this time, someone else will join them on their journey to becoming heroes. Though, whether this will be for better or for worse, who's to say? (For the Record, the story will follow along canon events, non-AU, slightly OC-centric.
1. Prologue

**A/N: Well, this was another story I wanted to put out. It's kinda just been at the back of my mind, waiting to be put down into words and given form. Hopefully I can make a story you guys/gals enjoy, and I'll try my best to make my dreams for this story a reality. But, I guess the only way to make that happen is to: "** Keep moving forward." **And with that, let's begin. ~**

 **Disclaimer: Obviously, I do not own RWBY or any other independent properties that I allude to other than my own characters and ideas; those are mine and mine alone, nobody else's. That is all.**

* * *

"A child once asked me why I had my pocket watch, if what I was using it to keep track of was something important. I'll never forget that moment as I looked at her, feeling my entire body quake as I gazed upon her pure and innocent face. In that moment, I could only answer her with a simple, 'Yes' as a tear ran down my face. Once she had her answer, she simply closed her eyes and beamed up at me with that ever-sweet smile of hers, one which would continue to haunt me until my final task was complete. In truth, I was using it to keep track of time until the world would be safe enough for her."-A promise to the unborn.

* * *

 **(Prologue-Inversion, 1** **st** **person Account)**

Well, there are a lot of things I could say here: I could talk about myself, about life or even the state of the world in general. I could speak about a lot of frivolous, meaningless things, but I could only grab one's attention for only so long. So, I suppose it's best if we get the most relevant question out of the way first: Who am I?

Well, I was, and am, just like anyone else and came from humble beginnings. I was born in an average hospital, in an average town, to an average family and life was generally good. Sure, it had its low points, some worse off than others, but it was what it needed to be and I dealt with it. I had the average experiences anyone else had: friends, family and foes alike, and like anything else they all made me into the person I am now. I was a fan of a great deal many stories, whether it was literature, visual media (I.E.[or E.G., not quite sure] television, web series, etc.) or even web-literature, a.k.a. Fanfiction and the like. And like anyone else, I preferred, or even revered, some stories over others and those often became my greatest inspirations, creatively or fundamentally.

Anyways, life went on as usual, and then it didn't. One day, my life was normal. The next, my life as I knew it was gone forever, but that's a pretty cliché thing for any type of protagonist/deuteragonist to give and say, isn't it? But, we all gotta start somewhere.

Since that day, many things have happened: some good, some bad and some just kind of that particular sort of ugly where it just makes you cringe for even just thinking about it. But, all those events are another story entirely. And perhaps, someday, you'll stumble upon it.

For now though, let's check upon the events that happened immediately afterwards and continue where the previous series of events left off: Where I, as an enthusiast of this tale, was given a way to enter into one man's world, his dream and ultimately… his final life's work.

Thus, knowing this world that he made, through the choices made for and by me so far, I was able to transcend the limits of my old life to continue on into another, and thus found myself in a new world entirely, with new abilities, people and details to explore, some of which I would know in foresight but even I only knew so much going into it all and would only be able to do so much. But, I was going to do my best to keep my footing here, even as I landed feet first, figuratively speaking, into this remnant of hell.

And thus, we find ourselves recovering from the end of one tale and into the uncertain beginnings of another…

* * *

 **(Prologue-Present, Location-Cliffside Forest, 3** **rd** **Person P.O.V.)**

It was dark out, the shadow of night claiming this side of the world while the light of dawn rose elsewhere, bringing about the start of another day for somebody else far, far away…

In this dark forest, the cold embrace of winter was ever-present as snowflakes fell, continuing to cover the ground with more and more of its icy essence.

In the monotony of this frigid weather, the silence of the forest was soon replaced with the sounds of trudging feet as a figure walked through the snow-laden forest as they made their way home, their business in this place concluded.

The person continued to walk through the forest before entering into the open expanse of a clearing, its size fairly impressive by all standards.

Though, it would soon become apparent that this person was not alone this night.

For, in this land, dark beasts of nightmares existed and thrived. Their only purpose? To destroy. Nothing more, nothing less. And for this instance, that truth would not change.

Coming out of the literal woodwork, Werewolf-esque creatures wandered out of the forest surrounding the clearing and encroached upon the figure's position before stopping some distance away, silently evaluating their prey. Meanwhile, the person halted in their trek at the creature's arrival, their red cloak flapping in the wind as they unflinchingly observed the foes before them.

A few moments passed and all was still. Then, three of the creatures leapt towards the figure, aiming to tear their target to ribbons.

In the distance, a white-cloaked soul who'd silently been tailing the trudging wanderer tensed, prepared to move forward to aid the red figure. Though just as he was about to act, he stopped, noticing that the other figure had already begun to act.

Where there had once been a red-garbed figure was now nothing but air and Rose petals, the wolf-like creatures crashing into one another after their failed attempt to rush their target. The creatures quickly stood up as they tried to find their quarry, looking around the area in confusion, though by then it was already too late for them.

In the sky above the clearing, the red figure, now identified as a young girl with black hair that reddened at its ends and wearing a red and black outfit, twirled in the air for but a brief moment before pulling out a curious invention.

From behind the back of her belt, she pulled out a dark, metallic device, which quickly expanded in a single moment into a much larger form, becoming a weapon of some sort. Its function, unclear.

Then, she aimed along the sights of the weapon… and fired.

Down below, one of the creatures was killed instantly, most of its head now missing as it sizzled away amongst the snowy ground.

A moment later, the girl landed, firing twice more at the creatures nearby, killing two of them swiftly before leaping away and altering her weapon once more.

It was now apparent that she held a red, mechanical scythe…that also doubled as a gun.

So with that, the battle continued between the two sides; the creatures charging unyieldingly towards their target, more of their kind coming to aid them, and the girl acting swiftly in response.

Once again, we come to the other side of the clearing, a person in a white cloak stood observing the battle since its inception, ready to act in case anything went awry but ultimately understood that the girl would be just fine. The creatures that were scattered throughout the area ignored him entirely in favor of attacking the graceful figure that was cleaving through them and their brethren.

Back with the girl, she had just finished another volley of attacks against the beasts, but their numbers were still far too high for comfort and at this rate it would still be some time to eliminate these creatures. Fortunately for her, she had a way to speed things up.

Pausing for but a moment, she dropped her weapon's now-empty magazine and loaded in another before pulling back the bolt of the weapon to load her weapon. And with that her assault began anew.

Launching into her attack, she became nothing more than a blur of red and black. Each and every one of her attacks turning the enemies around her into minced-meat; limbs flew into the air as her attacks cut entirely through her enemies, leaving red rose petals floating from the exposed wounds of the creatures as they dissolved into ash and smoke where they lay. Each and every one of them.

Soon enough, her barrage ended as the last of her enemies finally fell. And in conclusion, the girl idly struck a pose, her scythe behind her back, shells from her fired shots falling onto the ground all around her like metal snowflakes. Red rose petals drifted gently to the ground in the wake of her unique ability, giving the snow-laden earth another color other than black or white. Meanwhile, snowflakes continued to fall, painting the scene with a cold, crisp beauty all its own and accentuating the calm yet deadly serenity the girl seemed to exude all at once in this moment. Behind her, the moon continued to shine, outlining the girl with its simple, radiant glow.

Moments later, more growls were heard and several more creatures came out of the area of the forest behind the girl. Turning around at the sound, the girl's face went slack with incredulity.

"There are still more!? Why can't I just catch a break already!?" She whined, her voice filled with the high-pitch of adolescence found amongst most teenagers. She took a moment to sigh tiredly before reloading her weapon with a new magazine, dropping the spent one onto the ground with a loud clank.

Aiming down the sights of her weapon, she was just about to fire it when…

 **Boom! Boom! Boom! Boom!**

The distinct sound of gunfire rang out from far behind her in quick succession, each of the ten shots fired meeting its mark on the skull of each of the monsters, causing each of their heads to snap back from the force of each bullet; each of the beasts starting to vaporize from the bullet holes in their heads and disintegrating on their own as their bodies ceased to function.

Startled by the unexpected sight, she turned around only to see the distant form of a figure dressed in white, crouched with a rifle in their hands, the barrel of the gun still smoking in the cold air around it after firing its volley of shots.

Standing up from his crouched position, the figure reloaded his weapon, swapping out the empty magazine as he generated another to replace it. After taking a moment to chamber the bullet, just in case something unexpected were to happen, he leant the weapon against his shoulder, the rifle of the barrel facing upwards into the sky as he stood idle in the frigid conditions of this cold and desolate place.

The two people faced each other from both sides of the large clearing, neither of the two making a move to close the distance between them. A couple moments later the palpable silence amidst them was broken when the girl spoke up.

"Umm, thank you, I guess?" She said in an uncertain tone. Peering up at him behind the hanging bangs of her hair and past the crystalline snowflakes marring the air between the two. "Um, so, what are you doing out here? It's pretty cold out, do you need help finding your way back home or something?" She said timidly, her voice easily carrying out across the silent clearing.

Hearing this, the man only gave an amused, lighthearted chuckle before he went on to answer the young girl. "You're welcome, and don't worry about it, little red. Just kind of got lost, but I can find my way through on my own. I was in the area when I saw all these Beowolves coming through here and just came by to see if you needed any help, but it looks like you handled things here just fine by yourself. Nice moves by the way." He complimented, waving a hand as he gestured to her at his last point.

"Oh. Um, thanks." She said, tucking some of her hair back from her face as she blushed slightly from the compliment, though some of it could have been attributed to the frigid air around her. "So, who are you? And are you sure you don't need any help finding a town or something? It's pretty dark out, y'know?" She inquired innocently while unintentionally giving him a bashful look that would make most people's reservations about her whittle at its mere presence.

"Thanks, but I'm fine." He laughed. "As for who I am, well… I'm nobody, just a traveler, really. Anyway, I should get going; Got stuff to do, people to meet, things like that. I'll see ya around sometime, alright? Take care." He said, waving a hand over his shoulder as he turned around to leave.

"Wait, seriously? You're going to leave, just like that without even giving me a name? That's so unfair!" She huffed in agitation while stomping a foot into the snow in visible annoyance and impatience.

"No need to be so upset, Ms. Rose. I'm sure we'll meet again soon enough." He grinned softly, continuing to make his way out towards the end of the clearing and into the darkness of the forest beyond it.

"Wait, how do you know my name? Who are you?!" She said, starting to run as she prepared to use her previously displayed semblance to catch up to the mysterious man.

"Relax, I'm just a friend. There's no need for you to worry. Anyway, it's about time I get going, so I'll leave you to continue on your way back home safely. Until next time, little red…" He said, turning to her a giving her a gentle smirk to quietly try to rest her concern. Subtly, he began reaching for something in the pocket in the inside of his cloak, ruffling it as he looked for the object he so desperately hoped he still had with him in this lonesome place.

"Wait, hold on!" She said, putting away her weapon before using her semblance to enhance her speed dramatically, red rose petals floating and falling in her wake as she closed the distance between her and the man in mere moments.

Only a couple feet away from one another, the man finally found the device in his pocket and with a quiet, metallic click he suddenly shimmered into an after-effect for but a moment before disappearing entirely, leaving no trace of him as he all but vanished in the snow and wind of the world around him.

"Huh, where did he?... Hmph!" She asked once she reached the spot where the mysterious stranger once stood, only to find nothing but empty air and snow. At this sudden development, she grumbled in frustration and kicked lightly at the snow at her feet. After cooling down for a moment, she turned in another direction, deciding to finally head on through the forest towards her home. Hopefully her father or sister, if she was there, would know why he would be out here or what he might have been looking for. Then again, she didn't really need any more reason to rush out of this place considering she was quite literally freezing alive and would soon become a Ruby-sicle if she didn't hurry home anyway. And so with that, she quickly made off into the cold darkness of the world, intent on reaching the tender, warm light of home at long last.

Back at the edge of the clearing, an old crow looked to-and-fro in the two directions the figures left in while it sat atop a decrepit but otherwise nondescript-looking branch. It stayed perched like that for a few moments longer before extending its long, black wings and took flight, disregarding the falling snow around it as it flew away into the pitch-black night sky, disappearing from sight.

A fair distance from the clearing, a certain man in white deactivated his device and reappeared in the normal passage of time and took a look behind him over his shoulder in the direction of the clearing. Sighing to himself, he activated one of his armor's divine enchantments and spawned several pairs of wings on his back before he launched himself into the sky, on his way to find his next destination as quickly as he could. Well, within a reasonable course of time, at least.

There was still so very much for him to do, but there was no way he was going to miss this event; And there was absolutely nothing anybody could do to stop him.

* * *

 **(A week later, Location-Stadium)**

A young girl with a scarred left eye, long white hair, a white dress and white and red boots walked out onto a stage while soft music played in the background as people clapped and cheered at her arrival. As she stopped center-stage, the clapping and applause faded away and for a few moments there was nothing but the silence of anticipation.

Then, the slow, melodic tones of a piano filled the air, acting as the background music for tonight's performance. And with that, her beautiful, wondrous voice filled the air as she began to sing the piece known as: 'Mirror, Mirror'.

 _Mirror! Tell me something…_

 _Tell me who's the loneliest of all._

And while the final note of the intro part of the upcoming symphony rang out across both the stage and into the arena as she continued to sing magnificently to the crowd before her she also recalled a fairly recent memory, one in which she faced off in a battle against a large, autonomous suit of knight-like armor.

 _Mirror. Tell me something._

 _Tell me who's the loneliest of all._

As she continued to sing, the crowd was non-the-wiser as to her train of thought. As time went on, her singing still remained flawless, her recollection seeming to grant her clarity and focus in her current task.

 _Mirror. What's inside me?_

 _Tell me, can a heart be turned to stone._

A brief pause occurred, the otherwise silence of the moment being filled with the rapid flurry of high notes from a Piano; though, whether the musical tones heard were made from an actual instrument being played in the background or were simply a recording had yet to be revealed to the general audience.

For a couple, brief moments after the small piano solo had wavered there was silence. For a couple moments, nobody dared to even breathe, afraid they would miss whatever dramatic action occurred next; and what they young singer did next surely did not disappoint.

Through the dark, tense silence that pervaded the area, the entranced audience was both suddenly surprised by and awarded with the sudden appearance of one of the girl's signature parts, where she further displayed her sheer musical range and talent as she operatically sung to the crowd before her; though the part itself only did last for a minute, as well as being momentarily split with another brief interlude of silence, it was still quite the impressive display indeed.

 _Mirror, mirror. What's behind you?_

 _Save me from the things I see._

 _I can keep it from the world,_

 _Why won't you let me hide from me?_

And it was soon realized that at least _some_ of the performance did indeed have to be artificially supplemented as while the young girl in white did sing the primary vocals of the song, these subsequent lines of the song were supplied or accentuated by the addition of a background chorus which sang in tandem with some of the parts of the main singer.

 _Mirror, mirror. Tell me something._

 _Who's the loneliest of all?_

 _I'm the loneliest of… aaaaalllll…_

Soon enough, the performance at hand, as well as the one in her mind, seemed to come to an end. The battle in her mind concluding as the suit of armor crumbled to shards of ice at its defeat and the live performance reaching its ascending, final note before fading away entirely.

Then, the song and memory were over, and the crowd cheered and applauded all around her, waking her from her inner-musings. Focusing on the present reality, she opened her eyes and looked around the area briefly, almost as if she had now just acknowledged the presence of the audience before she looked up into the open/glass ceiling of the inside of the structure they were all in and into the face of the moon; part of the moon appearing to have crumbled away at its edge. While the reason for the moon's state was, as of now, unclear, the cause of such an event may have more than likely been supernatural.

After looking back to her present audience she bowed her head politely at their applause of her performance, just now recalling the etiquette which had so thoroughly been ingrained within her. And with that, she curtsied to the crowd before her as the curtains were loosened and began to close around her. A couple moments later, the two large pieces of fabric collided, obscuring the young performer from sight and thus signaling the concert's conclusion.

Soon enough, the crowd stood up and began to make their way to the exits as tonight's performance ended, intent on returning to their homes and away from tonight's frigid weather.

Sitting in the very back row of the theatre, all alone as far as anyone could tell, a familiar white-garbed man continued to slowly clap in appreciation of the performance before he too stopped clapping along with the crowd. With the show concluded, the man stood up and stretched after sitting for so long before he too made his way to the exits, parting through the crowd as he left.

Once he exited the stadium, he walked off into the shadows before disappearing from sight, using his signature ability to hide himself from wandering eyes as he once again took flight and disappeared into the starry night. Yet again heading to another significant location he had in mind while he was in the area.

Though, while this next visit would certainly not be as regal as tonight's performance, it would surely be just as significant.

* * *

 **(Some days later, Location-Transport Route)**

Two people stood atop a cliff as they overlooked the rail-way below, red trees filling the valley around them as they continued to wait and observe.

One of the figures was a man dressed in a floral black and red patterned trench coat and red and black hair. Between them, it seemed he was the higher ranked of the two, but that remained to be tested.

Meanwhile, the other individual, a young woman with light-complexioned skin, was garbed in a black and white outfit and had long, flowing black hair, adorned with a small, black ribbon. Currently, she seemed to be taking in every detail of their wayward mark, trying to find primary and alternative means to infiltrate, gather and exfiltrate what they came for. Idly, though, she also began to plan for something else which would soon come to bear if everything went according to plan.

And, as if on a silent queue, a train whistle broke through the air and the figures were off, sliding down the steep cliff-side towards their goal and launching themselves aboard.

Landing atop the train, they entered through a hatch on one of the sections, trying to be as discreet as possible while they carried out their task. Once inside, they noticed they weren't the only ones on this train; robots lined along the walls of the train-car they were in, sensory lasers scattered throughout the interior to alert and awaken the machines in case of any disturbances or miscreants, ones which they had unwittingly triggered upon their entrance into the carriage. And thus, the robots were awakened and the battle between the two sides began.

The fight between the two clashing forces was almost unfair, the robot's defensive programs being no match for the skills and experience of the two saboteurs. The battle continued to go in the duo's favor… that was until they reached the train-car housing their prize, a substance known only as: _Dust_. Once there, the battle began anew with the appearance of a much bigger threat to the two intruders, a spider-esque robo-tank which was tasked with guarding the train's precious cargo against any and all trespassers, which in this instance was the two Faunus.

The fight with this much more dangerous foe took to the open space of the open-roofed platforms further along the train. To face this overwhelming menace, one of the figures was tasked with the role of being the distraction while the other charged their own unique semblance and finished off the automaton in one quick, powerful counter-strike as he reflected the machine's own attack back towards it.

With the defenses cleared, they were both safe for the moment to continue their operation, but only one would stay true to their mission that day.

As a result of a conflict of interests between the two, one of the figures, the girl, chose to leave behind her association with her once dear friend-turned-terrorist and severed their ties, literally, as she slashed the lock holding the two train cars together and drifted away from him, both physically and associatively.

With that, she left behind her old life of crime in the hopes to create a future of her own making, one that she could actually come to appreciate and be proud of. One free from all this blame she had placed upon herself…

On a distant cliff, a figure overlooked the whole proceeding through the scope of his rifle as he laid prone on the ground, hiding him from sight, mostly; his white cloak contrasting strongly against the red and black forest around him. Not that he was trying particularly hard to stay hidden in the first place.

Thus, with the events here concluded, the figure stood up and tucked away the rifle in its holster on his back. He took a minute to appreciate the serenity of the forest around him before raising a hand and leaving the palm face-up. After a moment of waiting, a red leaf fell from one of the nearby trees and carried itself along a gentle wind current before a moment later it found itself landing in his palm.

Taking a few moments to scrutinize the leaf in his possession, he then tossed it up into the air and allowed the wind to take it away to its next destination, the leaf joining others of its kind as it went off to parts unknown. A gust of wind blew through the small clearing, sweeping away more red leaves as they traveled along the unseen winds flowing all around them.

Then, the man was gone.

* * *

 **(Sometime later, Location-Vale, city)**

The sound of footsteps echoed along a road as a pair of feet walked at a casual pace, carrying the body they belonged to towards its destination.

Along the road, a row street lights was active as the darkness of night encompassed itself over the city of Vale, the time of day showing that it had been some time since sunset and nowhere near the rise of dawn.

Car horns and sirens sounded off in the distance as a figure garbed in white walked along the sidewalk of the road, his destination in sight at last.

A couple of minutes later, he stood outside of the establishment, looking at the sign above the doorway as it simply read, 'Junior's club', accentuated by its neon lighting and the dull sound of club music coming from inside.

'Hmm, not very original. But I guess the neon grabs your attention well enough, I suppose.' He thought casually, personally he was never really one to criticize these sorts of things, considering it hardly concerned his interests at the moment, but regardless he focused back on the task at hand as he entered through the doorway of the club.

Once inside, the man both felt and heard the beat of club music playing, this song in particular a remix of the song known as, 'I Burn', a song he vaguely recalled in his time passing through one city and to another on his way here. The man paused once he was inside the club, evaluating the layout of the building as he looked around.

On the dance floor, an unremarkable crowd of people danced to the rhythm of club music playing around them, the DJ booth above the dance floor operated by a man wearing a suit along with a large dark-red bear head. How the man was able to see out of the mask and do his job so effectively was a mystery all in itself.

Continuing to survey the room, he noticed the guards/henchmen posted all along the walls and booths scattered throughout the room, some of them turning their gazes to the new arrival before looking away and continuing their silent vigil of the club; all of the men were dressed in a uniform which consisted of black suits, red sunglasses as well as the occasional cap or hat, though why they would wear shades indoors at _night_ was a complete mystery to him.

Deciding to ignore that final musing, chopping it up to just being a part of the uniform…or ego, the man caught sight of the bar and made his way towards it.

At the bar stood four distinct individuals, the bar and individuals themselves being flanked by more security personnel as they observed the people on and around the dance floor and club.

Two of the people by the bar were women, twins from the look of it, who each wore outfits with contrasting color schemes.

One of the girls wore an outfit consisting of a red dress, gloves and boots with black detailing. Her hair was shorter than her sister's as it held a feather in place by her ear, while her neck was adorned with a necklace as well to complement her appearance.

The other girl, however, wore a white outfit in a similar style as her sister's, but differed in the fact that she wore a white scarf around her neck as well as a bow on the front of her dress, her hair flowing down her back to her waist while her sister's only went slightly past the shoulders.

The other two individuals, excluding the henchmen, were both male who both greatly contrasted in appearances when compared to the other.

From his position, the traveler saw that the man on the left seemed to be wearing a white coat with a red lining and a grey scarf along with a pair of black pants and black shoes. On his head he wore a black bowler hat which had a red band with a small feather. As the man shifted his head to and fro as he dealt with the other man, it seemed that his orange hair seemed to cover his right eye while his left eye seemed to be outlined with black eyeliner and in his hand he seemed to be holding a grey cane with red detailing on either end; this man was known as Roman Torchwick, a criminal mastermind infamous for his numerous robberies and shady dealings all throughout Vale.

The man Roman was talking to was wearing a white shirt with a black vest over it with a red tie along with black gloves and blacks pants. Looking at the man's face, it seemed that the man had a moustache/beard combo which was the same shade of black as his short and orderly hair. Compared to the lanky stature of Roman, he was fairly tall and well-built in physique, fitting the description of a club bouncer more than anything; this man went by the name Junior Xiong, who was the manager and owner of the club if the few plaques adorning some of the walls of the club could be believed.

With the evaluation over and done with, the man made his way to the bar, uncaring of the stares of the guards on his back as he walked past them.

Approaching the bar, he passed by the four people, the two girls giving him a cursory glance as he stepped beside them as well, until he came to a stop at the counter of the bar. Taking this new vantage point to eavesdrop on the nearby conversation, the man leaned on the bar's counter, keeping his head down to avoid meeting the gazes of any wandering eyes nearby.

"…we have a deal then, right? A few of your men come with me to carry out an…operation I've got planned and you'll be well-compensated for their services. Well, as long as they do their jobs right, anyway." The suave, collected voice of who could only be Torchwick spoke out, smiling broadly at the man in front of him as he tried to convince Junior to send the resources he'd need for this new yet important venture of his.

"Fine, we've got a deal. But no fooling around, I need these guys for the club and it's a hassle dealing with whatever aftermath you leave behind if you fail. Now this job of yours, will-"

"Would you like something to drink, Sir?" The bartender suddenly asked, wiping down the bar while staring at the man in front of him dispassionately.

Ripped from his meddling of the nearby conversation, the man faced the bartender and took a moment to mull over his decision before calmly responding with:

"Yes, could I get a Strawberry Sunrise? No ice please… Oh! And it comes with one of those little umbrellas, right?" He asked, suddenly recalling a key detail of the night that he was sure to beat himself up for later for nearly forgetting. At this statement, he made a gesture with a couple fingers as if he were grasping something the size of a straw as he mentioned the mini-umbrella and luckily for him, he got a quick nod of affirmation from the bartender.

"One Strawberry Sunrise coming right up." The bartender responded, his voice carrying a peppy tone as he started on the order.

A minute passed in which the bartender mixed the customer's drink before serving him; while the man waited, behind him the entrance to the club started to open.

"Okay, so that'll be twenty Lien for the drink, sir." The bartender informed, leaning against the counter as he waited on the payment for the drink.

"Sure, here you go." The man responded without issue, while the sisters nearby looked at each other with raised eyebrows and visibly surprised looks, unable to believe anybody would pay the outrageous prices of this place but not bothering to do or say anything about it, they did almost consider this place home after all; no need for them to take away business if it could be helped. Regardless of the two's inner thoughts, the stranger handed forward a rather nondescript bill of money to the bartender.

"Thank you, sir. Let me know if you need anything else." He stated, depositing the money behind the counter and handing over the drink to the customer. With the order finished, he went about back to his task of wiping down the bar, a habit he learned to keep the hard way since his first week working under the slave-driver that was Junior.

"Will do." The traveler replied before looking down at the drink now in his hands, idly using the little orange umbrella to swirl around the contents of the glass as he waited. He just hoped it wouldn't be too much longer until the event of the night came to be. As he thought this, the entrance he previously used to get in shifted, someone else strolling on through the passage and into establishment.

Behind him, a girl with long, magnificent blonde hair and a revealing brown outfit with two golden gauntlets entered through the entrance of the club, surveying it much like he did earlier. Noticing the bar, she made her approach as the deal between Roman and Junior concluded.

"Pleasure doing business with you." Roman said as he tipped his hat at the man before turning away and leaving.

Junior turned back towards the bar and stepped up to it before leaning on its counter, standing next to the twins who were on his left (the cloaked man being to the left of them), leaving a space open on his right which was soon occupied by a certain bodacious blonde.

As the blonde approached the bar, Junior noticed the girl at the edge of his vision before turning to the twins and waving them away from the bar as he dealt with the girl.

"Strawberry Sunrise, no ice…oh, and one of those little umbrellas." The blonde ordered, to which the bartender nodded and started working on the order.

To the side, a certain customer chuckled lowly in amusement.

"Aren't you a little young to be in this club, Blondie?" Junior asked as he faced the girl.

The girl laughed lightly before responding with, "Aren't you a little old to have a name like Junior?"

Encroaching on the girl slightly, he gave her an intrigued but dangerous look, as if she had just stumbled upon a secret that many would have killed to keep. Strangest of all, at least in his mind, is why this girl of all people would come looking for him, and for what, exactly?

"So you know who I am? You got a name, sweetheart?"

"Yes, junior. I've got several. But instead of sweetheart, you can just call me sir." She said before promptly squeezing his…um, unmentionables, painfully, causing Junior to squeal in anguish.

Still maintaining her grip, she said, "People say you know everything. Tell me where I can find her and I'll let you go." She demanded before bringing out her scroll, a cellular/smart device, and showing him a picture of a mysterious, majestic-looking woman.

He took a brief look at it before turning his gaze back to the girl who was, for all intents and purposes, holding him captive. "I've never seen her before. I swear." He pleaded in a strained voice.

"Excuse me?" She asked irritatingly, increasing the grip on the man's family jewels.

"I swear, _sir_." He corrected, trying to maintain some semblance of dignity by not crying out in spite of this emasculating moment.

Encroaching upon the two, dozens of guards within the club formed up alongside the two conversing individuals, ready to take action against the girl threatening their boss.

Undaunted by the guard's presence, she comment on the situation. "Hmm, looks like we have an audience. This must be kind of embarrassing for you, huh? Awkward."

"Listen Blondie, sir. If you want to make it out of this club alive, I suggest you let me go, now." He pleaded, still with a strained voice.

Conceding to his request, she released the grip she had on him, causing him to exhale audibly in relief.

Getting up from his hunched position, Junior responded to his treatment by the girl. "You'll pay for that." He said, pulling out a pair of red sunglasses from the inside of his vest and putting them on, beginning to walk away from her.

Meanwhile, the girl continued to speak to him, acting as if nothing had happened at all. "Oh Junior, I was just playing with you. Don't be so sensitive." She cooed in a playful manner. "Come on, let's kiss and make up, okay?" She recommended.

"Huh?" He asked, confused by her sudden change in attitude. Looking at her, she appeared to be at least somewhat genuine in her offer. Guessing he had nothing to lose, he affirmed her with a simple, "Okay."

Then, both of them leaned in to one another to share a kiss, though just before the moment of truth, the girl interrupted it with a powerful punch, launching Junior into the air and through one of the glass pillars scattered throughout the room and sending him into one of the counters surrounding the dance floor; meanwhile, people inside the club started to flee the area, not wishing to risk themselves being on the receiving end of the unknown woman's fury.

At the impact site, Junior sat in a daze with small hearts circling around his head. As he tried to look up from his seated position to get a better grasp of what exactly just happened, suddenly a metallic canister rolled off a counter beside him, landing on his head and knocking him out cold.

Angered by the woman's actions, the security guards of the club turned to face the girl responsible and rushed towards her as they brandished their respective weapons.

As it became obvious that a fight was inevitable, the girl loaded her weaponized gauntlets, both of which were named _Ember Celica_ , as she prepared for the battle ahead of her.

Meanwhile, the man from before was still seated at the bar, watching the imminent fight whilst leaning back on the bar behind him. On the counter beside him his drink sat there, untouched.

As the men encroached upon the girl, she launched herself into the air and slammed her fist into the ground, causing it to ripple around her in a seismic wave which traveled to and knocked over the men around her while also setting the ground around her ablaze.

With that, the brawl at the club had officially begun.

The fight between the girl and the henchman continued to escalate as more and more went to face her, though her superior strength and skill allowed her to best them at every turn and soon enough there were no more left to face; she even faced the club's DJ as he fired his tommy gun at her, defeating him with relative ease and launching him to the dance floor and at the feet of two new and unexpected opponents.

Approaching the dance floor were none other than the twin sisters Melanie and Miltia Malachite, both of whom were also conveniently hired to guard the club, from time to time. Though, unlike the men before them, these two girls both had fairly adept fighting skills, though they both differed in styles, respectively.

"Melanie, who is this girl?" Miltia asked her sister.

"I don't know, Miltia, but we should teach her a lesson." Melanie responded in kind, strolling up to stand beside her sister.

With her previous fight finished, the blonde girl reloaded her shotgun-gauntlets as she prepared herself to fight against the sisters below her.

The fight between the three was fast-paced as the twins fought against the blonde with their preferred fighting styles; Miltia using her clawed gloves to fight while Melanie seemed to exclusively use her sharpened heels for the battle.

But soon enough, the twins themselves were put out of commission by the blonde intruder, unable to handle her massive onslaught and dealing only negligible damage to her in turn.

Then, as the battle between the three concluded, the two sisters limping away from the area in defeat, a final contender made his presence known.

Striding up from the shadows of the club, Junior approached the blonde on the dance floor, totting a large rocket launcher all the while and stopped at the top of the stairs above her.

"You're gonna pay for this." He stated simply in a no-nonsense tone before firing a volley of rockets at the girl, each of them approaching her from varying angles.

Seeing them approach, the blonde simply dived to the side to avoid the initial volley, preparing to face any more attacks he would launch at her.

A moment later, Junior fired another volley at the girl, though this time she stood her ground and fired shots from her gauntlets at the rockets, intercepting them mid-flight and causing them to detonate in a series of small explosions around her.

Seeing that his rocket attacks proved useless, Junior launched himself towards the girl, changing his weapon from a rocket-launcher to a large metal bat and swinging it at her as he approached her position.

Landing a few successful strikes at the girl and knocking her through a table, Junior stood across from the girl on the dance floor, waiting on her to make the next move.

Standing up from the onslaught of attacks, the blonde could only grin as she activated her own unique semblance, which set her golden hair alight and strengthened her attacks considerably, and charged towards him; However, though her strikes would become more powerful with every attack she received, her endurance in itself would not increase with her ability, thus essentially she become a glass cannon.

Seeing the girl approach him, Junior launched a blast from his rocket launcher, which was swiftly dodged, and prepared to counter-attack the girl with his bat.

Continuing her charge, the girl unleashed several devastating punches to the man, knocking him to and fro as he tried to fight back, to no avail. Eventually, she cocked her right fist back before sending it towards her opponent. Meanwhile, her eyes changed from a soothing lilac to an angry shade of red as the fight went on.

The powerful punch met its mark and sent him airborne, Junior righting himself mid-flight and standing across from her on shaky knees. Holding his Rocket-bat in one hand and a few strands of the girl's precious blonde hair in the other, he looked at the hair curiously before he turned his gaze back towards the girl.

As the girl noticed what the man now held in his hand, her entire demeanor changed from being merely determined seriousness to blazing fury in an instant, the sudden change causing her to light up the space around her in a brilliant flash of flames while also creating a powerful shockwave in the process.

With unrestrained fury, she charged towards him and launched a devastatingly powerful punch towards him, the colors of the space around her paling in comparison to the intensity of her furious, red eyes.

Then, fist met face in a climactic explosion, savagely launching Junior through one of the windows of the establishment as well as shattering all the glass of the windows beside it.

Sprawled on the ground outside of the building, Junior could only moan in anguish before succumbing to the cold embrace of unconsciousness. Meanwhile, a certain red-cloaked girl stood above him as she observed the after-effects of the blonde's final attack.

Looking up from the battered form of the man, the girl in red and black looked up in surprise before questioning the blonde girl before her. "Yang? Is that you?" She asked curiously, tilting her head to the side.

Jumping out of the building, the blonde couldn't help but be surprised by the unexpected arrival of a familiar face.

"Oh, hey sis." The newly identified Yang responded casually, her irises reverting from their previous red coloring to their default shade of lilac in an instant.

"What are you doing here?" The girl in red asked/ lightly-demanded as she put her hands on her hips.

Sighing as she hunched forward slightly, Yang could only respond tiredly with, "It's a long story."

"She came, she saw, she conquered." A voice replied distantly from behind her.

"Well that's a simple way of putting it. But yeah, basically…wait, who said that?" Yang asked, turning around to the direction the voice came from. The girl in red also looked over Yang's shoulder only to freeze as she recognized the approaching figure.

Exiting the club with a drink in hand, the same white-cloaked man strode up to the two girls before stopping a couple feet away from Yang. "I did. Nice fight by the way. But don't you think you were a little rough with Junior here?" He said, nudging said individual with his foot, causing the downed man to groan lowly through his unconsciousness.

"After what he did to my hair, he had it coming! Besides, the guy was a thug. I mean what kind of a guy hits a girl, right?" Yang asked, meanwhile her sister still stood shocked at the sight of the man in white.

"Hmm, point taken. I'll try to stay off your bad side then. Oh, did you want a drink by the way?" The man asked, handing the girl the drink he ordered for her earlier, knowing the calamity she was sure to bring upon her appearance at the establishment.

"Umm, sure? But uh, how do I know that you didn't drug it or something? Not that I'm ungrateful for it or anything. But still, gotta at least ask about these things, you know?" She shrugged nonchalantly before scrutinizing the contents of the beverage in her possession.

"Well, for one, I'm not the type of guy to do something like take advantage of a girl or poison somebody; If I have an issue with you, you'll know. Besides, why would I want to do something to jeopardize your image of me? I mean, do I really look like the kind of guy that would do something as low as that?" He asked rhetorically, but seeing the blonde's unbelieving stare, he sighed aloud before adding: "Look, fine. I get it, you don't trust me quite yet or whatever. So, I guess if you really don't want it, I guess I'll just keep this delicious Strawberry Sunrise all to my-." And with that he started to tilt the drink ever-closer to his lips, but before they could get within an inch of his face it was snatched away in an instant by a familiar, yellow-gauntleted hand.

"A Strawberry Sunrise?! Well, why didn't you say so earlier!? It's my favorite!" Yang suddenly blurted out, claimed drink in hand, raising it at the end of her statement like it was a triumphant prize earned at long last.

Chuckling, Gabriel look at the blonde-headed warrior with mirth, looking at her once-suspicious face now filled with glee at the prospect that she was able to get at least _one_ thing she'd wanted tonight, even if it was the lesser of the two.

"Heh. Well, glad I could help make your night after everything that happened. But, I guess I have my own stuff to do right now, so I better get going. I'll see the both of you around sometime. Take care."

And with that, he turned on his heel and made to leave on his way. Though, before he could take more than a couple steps away, something stopped him in his tracks.

"Wait!" A high-pitched voice yelled out from behind. Turning around to face the source of the voice, the man's concealed, dark eyes met with the silver ones of the girl dressed in red.

Meanwhile, Yang decided that she had no real reason _not_ to trust the guy and decided to take her chances and took a sip her drink, smacking her lips and nodding slightly in approval to herself as she savored the sweet flavor of her long-awaited drink.

"Yes?" The stranger asked, curious to hear what the younger girl had to say to him.

"It's you, isn't it? The guy I met at the forest the other day?" After he nodded at her answer, she went on. "What are you doing here with Yang? Do you two know each other?" She asked him, casting a curious glance to the both of them.

"Nope."

"Nah."

Both the man and Yang responded, simultaneously looking at each other for a moment as they both noticed the brief moment of synchronization before dismissing the event as a coincidence and looking back to Ruby.

"I suppose I just came to enjoy the music and show while I was in town. But no, I've never even met Yang until now and she certainly doesn't know me, it was just a bit of fortuity that we got here during the same night is all."

"He's telling the truth, sis." Yang clarified before turning to face the guy. "Though I do have to ask, why didn't you run away with everyone else? Were you enchanted by my charming personality or were you more interested in something else?" Yang teased, battering her eyes mock-bashfully at him while leaning towards him, unintentionally giving him a good view of her cleavage.

"Nope, not quite. I was just having fun seeing you go to town on those guys." He said, maintaining full eye contact with her, not daring to give her an excuse to come after him if his attention went to anywhere else aside from her face; besides, after what she just had to deal with just minutes earlier, she deserved more than having some stranger ogle her; she at least earned that much.

"Humph, you're no fun. Oh well." She sighed, straightening up and adopting a more conserved stature before turning to the side to speak with the other girl in the group. "Well sis, I've gotta get going. Did you need a ride home or anything?" She asked her sister, gesturing to her parked motorcycle, Bumblebee, down the street.

"Umm, no. I'm okay." Yang's sister replied, shying away at the mere mention of the vehicle. Then again, who wouldn't? Considering how Yang tends to drive and all. "Besides, I kinda wanted to talk to this guy a bit and see what he was up to around here. Then, I guess check out some stuff at one of the stores or something."

"Need me to stick around in case he tries anything?" Yang said, punching a fist into her open palm for emphasis.

"Nope, he seems okay. I don't think he'll do anything to try to hurt me. Besides, I think I can handle him if anything were to happen." She said, patting a certain, compact-size device at her side for emphasis.

"Well, if you say so. I'll see you around, Ruby. Later …?" She paused as she looked at the man, waiting for him to fill in the blank of her unsaid question.

"Gabriel, the name's Gabriel." He supplied, not sensing any real need to evade the question.

"Later then, Gabriel." Suddenly, Yang leaned forward towards him once more, looking infinitely more stern this time. "And just for the record: if you do _anything_ to my sister, I _will_ **break you**! Alright, see ya around!" She added cheerfully after the not-so-subtle threat, acting as if the former had never even been said at all, but the words continued to ring true within the young man's mind as he watched her head towards her bike, mounting it and pulling on her yellow helmet and goggles from one the bike's hidden storage compartments.

"Bye, Yang!" The newly identified Ruby yelled out to her sister as she pulled off a quick wheelie and sped off into the city. Once Yang was out of sight she looked over to Gabriel, only to see an empty space where he once stood.

'Wha- Hey, where'd he go?' She thought to herself anxiously, wondering where the stranger could have gone in the short amount of time she had kept her attention off of him.

Looking around frantically, she finally caught sight of him as he walked down the road they were on, heading further into the night-life of the city.

"Wait up!" She yelled, hurrying after him to try to catch up.

Slowing down a bit, Gabriel was finally rejoined by Ruby as she matched his pace and started to walk along backwards with him, giving him a curious look. "Where are you going?" She asked.

"I'm heading over to a dust shop further in town. There are a couple things there that I need to look into by the end of the night, but I'm not quite sure where it is." He answered in an honest tone, casting a brief look over to Ruby before looking back to the road they were on and trying to navigate his way around the city.

"What's the place called? Maybe I can help you find it." She suggested, shrugging unsurely as if emphasizing the point.

"It's called: 'From Dust till Dawn'. I've heard it's a nice little place and that they sell music albums, weapons magazines and Dust, obviously. Did you want to tag along?" He asked, turning his head to look at her.

"Oh yeah, I know that place! I was planning on going there anyway since it's one of the only shops that's still open. Come on, I'll take you there!" She said as she turned around to get ready to rush into the city ahead before pausing in her spot as a thought suddenly popped enter her mind, a fundamental one at that. "Umm, what was your name again?" She asked as she suddenly turned to face him.

"It's Gabriel, Gabriel Van Helsing. It's nice to be properly introduced." He stated, the both of them stopping to shake hands.

"Gabriel? That's a nice name, if a bit plain. My name's Ruby Rose, you know, like the color? Anyway, it's nice to finally have your name. And you know, it wasn't very nice not telling me it the first time we met." She pouted, her nose scrunching up at the action.

He sighed, scratching the back of his head with his hand before answering. "Yeah, I guess it was pretty rude of me to do that. I'm sorry. I didn't know it would really bother you."

"Well it did and I'll only forgive you if you answer me one question: Tell me how you knew my name when we first met." She questioned, fixing him with an unflinching stare.

"…Back then, when I said that the reason I was out there in the forest was because I got lost… that was a lie. Truth is…I was trying to find something, something very precious to me. I had just arrived in the forest when I caught a glimpse of your red cloak. So I ended up following you, trying to figure out why _you_ would be in a place like that and I ended up following you to that memorial stone on the cliff overlooking the forest. You looked so sad when you saw it but at the same time you seemed to almost… draw _strength_ from it; whoever the stone was for must have meant a lot to you. So, when you left I decided to see who it memorialized and found the name: 'Summer Rose', along with a small inscription written below it. So, I figured they were close to you and that you might have shared their surname; like a sister or something. I know it was a bit weird that I made that connection but I really didn't much else to go on. And, in the end, when you ended up at that clearing and I heard all those Grimm closing around I stayed around to make sure you would be okay, but it seems you were more than strong enough to handle anything that forest could have thrown at you." He hesitated, wondering if the next question he wished to ask would be a bit too much and that maybe he should just leave that topic to rest where it lied or risk asking her about it anyway in the hopes of better understanding her. Then, after several tense moments of inner-deliberation, he made up his mind on the matter. "But, I'm curious… Who was she to you, Ruby?" He asked, trying to sound polite in the wake of what was sure to be a very personal question. He only hoped she wouldn't take it the wrong way.

"She…she was my mom. I lost her a long time ago when I was still just a baby. She was a huntress and my dad said that one day she went on a mission and… never came back. Now, that stone is all that I have left of her." She said quietly, trying to hide the sadness in her voice, but ultimately failing as a couple tears began to fall from her eyes, forcing her to look away towards the ground. Both of which he instantly noticed.

"Oh geez Ruby, I'm so sorry. I didn't mean to bring back those kinds of memories for you, I really didn't…" He tried to apologize, reaching a hand out and lightly laying a hand on her shoulder, hoping to provide her with some measure of comfort.

"It's okay. She's gone and has been for a while now and nothing I can do can change that. I just… I just try to visit her every once in a while and try to keep her memory alive by trying to become a huntress." She took a moment to wipe her eyes quickly before turning her face back towards his, her features resolved. "That way I can save people and there won't be any more people who have to grow up alone like I did! Though, I really shouldn't say that. I mean, I still have my dad and he's pretty awesome, so I guess it wasn't so bad!" She amended, her voice filling with renewed vigor and assurance as she smiled at the thought of what she still had in the end with her family; she knew that because of them, she'd never be alone.

"Hmm, yeah." He said, nodding thoughtfully. "That's very admirable of you, Ruby. And I'm sure that wherever your mother is, she would be very proud of you."

"Yeah, I like to think so too. But, thanks for saying it anyway. I really appreciate it." She said, giving him a grateful smile.

"No problem, Red. But, um, anyway, shouldn't we be going to that store now?" He asked, pointing off into the city ahead.

"Ah, yes! Come on, let's go!" And with that she bounded away down the road towards one of the intersections, waiting for him at the corner of the sidewalk; the seriousness of the previous discussion seemingly forgotten.

Chuckling as he caught up to her, they both walked off into the night, talking about casual matters and their observations of the city around them as they made their way to their destination at last.

And on this night, the story of two legends began.

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 **A/N: Well, that's that. I hope you guys enjoyed this and I look forward to seeing where the story will lead in the future. So, until next time, this is The Brutal Legend, signing off and logging out.**


	2. Silver Eyes

**A/N: Hey again, I'm proud to present another chapter in the RWBY Slippers saga! Glad to see that there are some people who are taking the time to turn their attention to my story, I really appreciate it. ^-^ Fans like you guys make the story worth writing and I appreciate each and every one of you, each new notification for the story brings a new fuzzy feeling in the pit of my stomach…or that could be the warm soda acting up. *shrugs* Anyway, on to the answering section for the reviews!**

 **Re: Judgment of the Arbiter-I've always been a stickler for stories with canon and I thought I'd stick to that concept. Though while AU stories can be good or bad depending on the reader, I admire their courage to delve into the unknown nonetheless, since those people are brave or creative enough to stray from the guidelines and boundaries of the worlds they work with to make something unique from them. But, who knows? I may make this slightly AU at some point, perhaps in the time-gap between Volume 1 & 2 and 2 & 3, adding my own bits and skits into the story mix. Perhaps even doing something particularly interesting for the events after Volume 3, but I'll see when I get there. But until then, this story is going to follow the chronology and concepts of this world and its settings.**

 **Disclaimer: I do not, in fact, own this series. Monty Oum and Rooster Teeth hold that honor and I have no intentions of disputing it. I only own my own concepts and ideas I add into it. So, without further ado, let's get back to the story!**

* * *

"The future is what you make of it. Destiny is its meaning and fate…is its reward."- G.V.H.

* * *

 **(Outside on the streets of Vale)**

On the darkened streets of Vale, a group of men made their way along the middle of a long road, their mere presence alone intimidating the people around them enough to cause them to move out of the men's path. Luckily for these bystanders, mugging these people wasn't what these men had in mind at the moment. For tonight, they had bigger fish to fry.

Their destination? The shop known simply as: 'From Dust till Dawn'. And in a few minutes, they would soon be upon it, and there would be nothing any of these people could do to stop them.

* * *

 **(Inside the Dust shop)**

Meanwhile, in the store, two people were browsing through its selections.

Near the far wall, a girl in red and black looked through a recent issue of a weapon magazine, the dull sound of music emanating around the immediate area through her headphones. The song she was currently listening to being called: 'This will be the day.' sung by a popular band known all throughout Vale, maybe even around the world.

At the front counter of the store, two individuals faced one another from opposite sides of a clear glass case displaying various types of dust crystals. One of the men was an aged man with squinted eyes, balding hair and wearing a relatively plain uniform, distinguishing him as the owner of the establishment.

Standing across from the elderly gentleman was a cloaked figure in white, his silver-gloved hands reaching out from under his cloak as he leaned on the case, looking down and scrutinizing the various types of crystals in the case before him. The man's facial features were scrunched together in concentration as he looked over the item selection before him, unsure which item to ultimately choose before going on his merry way. After taking several moments to look over the contents of the case, the younger male spoke up.

"Excuse me, could you tell me a bit about each type of dust crystal in the case? You see I'm not from around here and the small town where I lived was fairly isolated and I barely learned anything about Dust while I was there. But, now that I'm out exploring the world I was hoping to learn a bit more about the subject. You'd be doing me a great service if you did and I'll even make it worth your while by buying a dozen crystals of whichever type I like the most afterwards, just so you don't feel like I was wasting your time." Gabriel lied casually, though the owner didn't need to know that. Nor did he seem to notice.

The elderly man grunted and nodded, though instead of explaining it himself he brought out a small encyclopedia detailing each type of dust crystal, their functions, and when each type of dust was discovered, the location of discovery and who had founded them-according to written records, anyway.

"That'll be fifty lien, sir. And don't worry, I won't ask you to buy anything right now. Just tell your friends about this place, alright?" He said in low, hoarse voice before ringing up the price of the book on the register he kept below the countertop.

"Sure thing, sir, and thank you. You've been a big help." Gabriel said, bringing out a green colored lien card out of one of the pockets from the inside of his cloak and handing it to the business owner.

"You're welcome. Now, is there anything else that you needed?" The shop owner asked, leaning on the counter as he gave the younger man the small encyclopedia, a gentle smile adorning his face once their transaction was complete.

"No that's-" Gabriel responded as he tucked the book away in his' cloak.

However, the sudden sound of a door opening sounded behind him, causing him to stop abruptly mid-way through his statement to look over his shoulder to get a glimpse at the new arrivals.

"…all." Gabriel finished lamely as he watched who had entered the humble establishment.

Walking past the current customer and up to the glass counter, various henchmen scattered throughout the room while discreetly surrounding both men at the counter. Entering the store from behind them, a man wearing a white coat dashed a bit of ash off of his cigar and spoke to the business owner.

"Do you have any idea how hard it is to find a dust shop open this late?" Roman asked as one of the henchmen to his left aimed a pistol at the owner. Meanwhile, another pistol was aimed at Gabriel's head from behind, the weapon making a small whine as it charged up and loaded.

Raising his hands up at the threat, the owner spoke up. "Please, just take my lien and leave." He said fearfully, shaking slightly in place in terror.

"Shh, shh, shh, calm down, we're not here for your money." Then, turning to the henchmen beside him, he uttered. "Grab the dust." Sending several of the henchmen over to the dust canisters by the walls of the shop and inserting extraction vials into them, pulling out their volatile contents and causing the small canisters to light up with their new contents. Meanwhile, one of the henchmen demanded for the owner to deposit some dust crystals into a case they brought out as it was set on the counter; A demand to which the owner forlornly obeyed.

"Now, what do we have here? A late night customer? Look, surrender any dust you have and nobody has to get hurt." Roman said as he turned his attention to the other man at the counter, one of the thugs still pointing a gun at the cloaked figure's head.

"Unfortunately, I didn't buy any dust and I don't have any on me. So you're wasting your time with me." Gabriel responded coolly, not daring to move in case a stray shot from one of the armed gunmen might end up hitting the owner in front of him.

"Hmm, is that so? Check him." Roman commanded the thug beside him, who kept one gun aimed while he patted down the cloaked individual.

"No dust sir, but this guy is packing some serious heat." The thug said, brandishing one of the simple but powerful-looking hand-cannons he now held as he showed it to Roman.

"Hmm, now we wouldn't want somebody hurting themselves with that. So why don't we just hold onto this for safe keeping then?" Roman said, taking the pistol from the thug and pulling out the other from Gabriel's cloak and tucking it away in his own coat.

"Aww, you don't trust me? I'm heartbroken." Gabriel said with a barely-concealed scowl, subtly trying to hide the sound of disdain from his voice.

"Hey, don't get snippy with me now. Remember, I'm the one here with all the guns, so you better shut it and play along." Roman retorted, waving his cane around to all the armed thugs in the shop.

It was at this moment that one of the robbers flew through the air, slamming into the interior front wall of the building and knocking over some cans on display in the shop.

Noticing the action, Roman motioned for the thug pointing the weapon at Gabriel to go investigate the disturbance, to which the thug did before saying, "Freeze.", pointing his weapon at somebody out of their (Roman's and Gabriel's) line of sight, standing in one of the aisles of the store.

A moment later, that same thug went flying through the window, followed closely by one Ruby Rose.

A few moments later, in which both sides stared at one another, Roman broke the brief silence. "Okaaay. Get her." Roman ordered calmly, causing the thugs to exit the store and confront the girl now keeping them from leaving.

Over the next few moments, in an act of severe restraint along with incredible skill, Ruby quickly and non-lethally defeated the thugs one-by-one, knocking each of them unconscious with an unforgiving beating from either kicks or simple blunt force trauma from her weapon. And as expected, the fight eventually came to an end moments later, where she sent the last of her opponents sliding along the paved road they had all been fighting on and conveniently towards the feet of their leader nearby.

Looking down at his defeated crew, while the sounds of sirens blared in the distance, Roman spoke up. "You were worth every cent. Truly you were." He mumbled sardonically to the downed man before turning his head upward to gaze at the girl who had given him so much trouble in so very little time.

"Well Red, I think we can all say it's been an eventful evening." He said, tossing his cigar to the ground and crushing it beneath his foot.

"And as much as I'd love to stick around, I'm afraid _this_ is where we part ways." He stated as he pointed his cane at the girl, the tip of the shaft shifting as the lens on the bottom of it flipped up into a crosshairs, the barrel of the weapon now aimed right at the unblocked form of the girl. And with that, a blast of dust crystallized Dust shot out of the weapon and impacted against Ruby, destroying the road that lay between the two of them.

Flipping over the attack in order to avoid the brunt of it, Ruby landed on the ground and looked around for Roman but didn't find him anywhere in sight. Afraid that he had gotten away, she looked around the nearby buildings in an effort to find him. After a brief couple of seconds, she saw him a couple stores down from her and the shop, trying to escape by climbing one of the emergency ladders on the side of the building.

It was here that the owner of the store stumbled out, still a bit shaken by the experience. Upon seeing the older man stumble shakily out of the shop, Ruby asked, "You okay if I go after him?", to which he simply grunted his approval. And with that, she took off after Roman.

Moments later, as both Roman and Ruby reached the roof of the building, Roman ran to the far edge of the paved roofing before Ruby's voice rang out with a soft yet demanding, "Hey." And upon hearing the voice of the one who had been so eager to ruin his plans for that night he could only mutter an annoyed, "Persistent.", to himself in response.

After a couple moments, the large, bulbous form of a V-TOL Bullhead rose out from its idly-hidden place along the street and into the air in front of them before leveling out, sending gentle currents of air throughout the immediate area as it hovered in place with its one hatch open, awaiting the return of its sole-remaining passenger. Though just before Roman could climb aboard the vessel, a hand shimmered out of the air behind him and gripped his arm, keeping him in place.

"Did you really think I would let you get away before I got my things back?" Asked the slightly-perturbed voice of the until-now absent Gabriel before he abruptly turned the escapee around, reached into the man's coat and retrieved both of his pistols and kicked the man in the chest and into the air slightly, launching the mastermind of the night into the troop bay of the vehicle.

Standing up after being knocked into the Bullhead, Roman leaned against one side of the hatch, holding his head in disorientation as the feeling washed over him briefly before fading away, allowing him to once again stand up fully after the roughening experience. "You're gonna regret that! Now it's the end of the line, for the both of you!" He half-shouted before he tossing a red dust crystal from his coat, the crystal soaring through the air for a moment before landing right at Ruby's feet.

Then, as the crystal of red dust landed, Roman fired a shot from his cane, intent on blowing both of the people on the roof to smithereens. Though, before the shot could have a chance to impact, a figure landed between the attack and the Crystal, blocking Ruby from what would have likely been a very dire fate.

Standing in front of Ruby was a woman with light-complexioned skin, blonde hair, and green eyes covered by a tasteful set of glasses, all the while wearing a black and white outfit complete with a purple cape cut into the shapes of arrows.

"Wow, that was close. Nice timing by the way." At the sound of the voice, both women abruptly turned to the source, Glynda looking behind her while Ruby looked up after bracing herself for the explosion, and saw Gabriel hunched on the ground, holding the red dust crystal in his hands, his body still showing the signs of having traversed through the stillness of time and space to get to the crystal in time in order to save his friend's life. Then, he stood up and briefly examined the crystal before tucking it away in his cloak to study later.

After acknowledging the man's presence briefly, Glynda fixed her glasses minutely and turned to the intruders and countered with an attack of her own: sending several lances of purple energy flying towards and impacting against the Bullhead still floating above them, causing the vehicle to tilt to and fro with every impact from her attacks as they collided with its hull, significantly denting and pinging the armor of the craft.

As Roman tried to keep himself stable through the onslaught of attacks, he ventured towards the cockpit and notified the pilot as they fought to keep the aircraft stable.

"We have guests.", he muttered, none too pleased with how things were going for his plans so far and knowing he'd be paying for it later. If he managed to escape, at least.

Upon hearing this, the pilot swiftly arose from their seat and went to confront the group that now threatened their escape. Meanwhile, Roman switched places with the shadowed figure of the cabin and took rein of the controls of the airborne vehicle.

Charging up an attack, Glynda sent it flying to the area above the aircraft and summoned a small storm which rained shards of ice, destabilizing the aircraft further and slowing its hampered escape.

Then, the former-pilot of the aircraft reached the open doors of the vessel and faced the attackers. Once they had them in their sights, the hidden form of the female figure charged up her attacks through the dust laced in her clothes, and possibly through her Semblance, and fired magma and fire-based attacks at the attacking huntress, surrounding her and igniting Glynda's position in a pillar of fire, forcing the experienced Huntress to dodge out of its way, narrowly escaping the attack before it could fully ignite, a pillar of flames igniting the spot where the Huntress once stood as its light and heat flared through the area for only a moment before simmering away.

Recovering from the attack, Goodwitch gathered the shards of the building that were created from the destruction left by her opponent's attack and used her own abilities to form them into a splintered spear shooting it towards the Bullhead. Unfortunately, Glynda's attack was intercepted by the fire-woman's own fire-based counterattack, shattering Glynda's initial attack. However, quickly adapting to the situation, Glynda began gathering the remnants of her attack over and over again before sending each piece of its left-over shrapnel careening against the vessel from different angles before the mysterious female figure dispersed the attack entirely by incinerating all the shards of debris around the aircraft in a quick and powerful arc of flame, giving the two people in the aircraft the opportunity they needed to escape.

Seeing that their targets were getting away, Ruby fired several shots from her weapon at the fleeing criminals, all of the shots being easily blocked by a single hand by the woman as she counter-attacked and flared several spots along the rooftop of the building, causing several explosions that the two women only barely dodged.

Meanwhile, Gabriel activated an ability of his own, sprouting a set of light-based wings and allowing him to take flight and speed towards the retreating form of the aircraft with his scythe in hand, the weapon itself being shaded in with a darkened veil as he channeled darkened energy into the weapon.

Gabriel flew alongside the aircraft, preparing to swing his weapon to slice the aircraft in half with energy as it tried to fly away. Though, just as he sent a wave of darkened energy towards the aircraft, the mysterious woman turned towards the direction of the attack, making direct eye contact with the airborne warrior, her glowing ember eyes piercing through him to his very soul under the cover of shadows, and launched a wave of ember-flakes of dust towards the attack, intercepting it before it could impact the aircraft and creating a colossal explosion that shook the area around it, causing several vehicle alarms to go off in the area.

Under the cover of the large plume of smoke and vibrations created by the explosion, the aircraft reached full speed and flew away, much faster than the winged-hero could catch on his own power, and before he could do anything about it the aircraft was already out of sight as it flew behind several, taller buildings further within the city and disappearing off to parts unknown.

As Glynda looked to where the aircraft disappeared to, her attention was suddenly diverted to the side as she heard a young voice.

"You're a huntress…Can I have your autograph?!" Ruby suddenly gushed as the battle finally came to a close, bringing her hands out in front of her excitedly as she hoped that the woman would agree to her request now that things settled down.

Meanwhile, Gabriel reappeared and landed on the woman's other side, indifferent about the woman's presence as he looked out into the distance where the aircraft disappeared off to. Unconsciously, he pulled out the red dust crystal in his possession and examined it, rolling it around in his grasp as he looked it over as it radiated a slight bit of warmth in his hand.

Then the woman spoke up, but not in the way Ruby was hoping for.

"You're coming with me to the police station. Both of you." Glynda commanded in a no-nonsense tone, fixing the younger girl with a cold, piercing glance.

It was almost sad really as Ruby's face went from star-struck to almost heartbroken in a single instant…

* * *

 **(Later that night, Police station-interrogation room)**

In the waiting time between Glynda Goodwitch notifying her superior of the incident on the rooftop, amongst other details, and her waiting for said supervisor to arrive, two people sat beside one another in the tense atmosphere of an interrogation room. The silence between them soon broken as one of them spoke up.

"…This stinks. Why do they make us wait sooo long?!" Whined Ruby, whom was slouching dramatically in her seat from boredom.

"Some say it's an unofficial interrogation tactic. They make you wait so that with nothing else to do, you start overthinking things about what you may have done to be here in the first place. Then when the time comes and they start questioning you, your start getting sloppy whenever you lie and they can catch it more easily. But like I said, it's unofficial and it doesn't work all the time, but still, it increases their chances of getting a straight answer out of you, even unintentionally…but then again, they could just be really slow tonight." He elaborated, going into more detail than usual since they had nothing else to do while they waited.

"How do you know all of that? Wait, have you been in one of these rooms before? You've never been arrested before, right?" Ruby said, leaning slightly away from him while still in her seat.

"Nooo… I just used to watch a lot of law-drama shows when I was younger; my mother liked watching them whenever they came on and I didn't exactly hate them, so I just watched them out of habit more than anything. So no, I haven't been in one of these rooms before, or at least not in person. Though it does feel different when _you're_ the person at the table being interrogated rather than watching it happen to someone else…" Gabriel finished, feeling slightly uneasy as he waited for their interrogator to inevitably arrive.

Sitting back normally in her chair, Ruby resumed her line of questioning. "Do you think they're gonna send us to prison after this? I don't want to want to be a criminal! My dad will kill me! And they'll make us wear those baggy looking jumpsuits! And I don't even look good in orange—"

Interrupting her small bout of panic, Gabriel tried to appease her fears. "Relax. They aren't going to arrest us, Ruby. We didn't do anything wrong. They just want to ask us a few questions about our involvement in the case and any details we might know. All you have to do is give them the truth and we'll be out of here in time for breakfast." He paused, the sudden mentioning of food inspiring him with a way to help cheer up his somewhat-ailing acquaintance. "Hey, wanna see something cool?"

"Sure!" She chirped, sitting upright in her seat at his words and looking at him expectantly.

"Alright, close your eyes."

"Why?" She asked.

"It's a surprise. Now just close them."

"Umm, okaaay?" She drew out but complied with his request regardless, albeit reluctantly.

Then, there was the subtle sound of something, though exactly what that sound was couldn't be discerned. All that could be said about it was that it sounded eerily like the sound of clinking wind-chimes, but much, much quieter. Almost ethereally so.

"Alright, you can open your eyes now."

Opening her eyes, she was instantly greeted with the sight of…a giant chocolate chip cookie, one which was about the size of a pancake.

"Is…is that a-", She asked, her eyes quivering slightly as her mouth started to water, almost on the verge of drooling.

"Yep, and it's all yours." He smiled, handing her the cookie.

"Wow, thanks! This is awesome!" She said, starting to take ravenous bites out of the large cookie before she paused suddenly, turning to him and asking, "Where did you get this from? I thought they took all our things when they brought us in?"

"I made it." He answered simply, leaning back in his seat and crossing his arms in front of him.

"What? How?"

" _Magic!_ " He said, waving his hands melodramatically at her, giving her an amused smile.

"Woah, really?" She asked gullibly, her eyes widening comically while she glanced between the cookie and him.

"Yeah, so just consider it a gift from me to you." He said, smiling as he placed his chin on the palm of his hand and leaned on the table in front of him.

"Wow, thanks! But why?" She asked curiously.

"No reason, really. Can't a friend just give another friend a gift just because?" He asked, raising an eyebrow at her.

"Well yeah, but…yeah. Thank you." She finished lamely, looking at the cookie slightly mollified before continuing. "Sorry. It's just that I don't have a lot of friends, and the ones I had were all back at Signal Academy, back on Patch. And even back then I didn't get a lot of gifts, we just sort of hung out, talked about stuff and mostly just learned stuff at school. But, I never really got any gifts from them, so I'm not sure really what to say about this other than thanks."

"Don't worry about it Ruby, it's no biggie." He said, amused by her needless concern over something so trivial, not really seeing the importance it might have had for her.

"It is so a biggie, just look at it!" She said as she waved the savory item at him before going back to eating it in between talking, completely missing the point he tried to make. "Anyway, thanks again. I love it! It's not every day you get something as amazing as this from someone you consider one of your bestest friends after all." She asked, looking back at him every now and again as she munched lightly on the cookie, which was already down to about just under halfway done.

"Well, I wouldn't exactly go as far as to say that~" He said hesitantly, sitting up slightly as his stature tensed up a bit in apprehension, unsure of exactly how to consider her words, other than be both apprehensive yet appreciate of how she felt about their newly-found relationship, if it could be called that.

"Why not? You seem pretty cool and I'd already considered us buddies ever since we first had a real chance to talk earlier. And you've even tried to save me, even when you really didn't need to."

"Well, I couldn't let him hurt you now could I? Besides, I still had to get my things back from him and there was no way I was going to let him get away with my things." He reasoned, tilting his head towards her as he acknowledged her words,

"But still, you had no real reason to help me out, you could have just stayed with the shop-owner and stayed out of it like anyone else, but you didn't. Even when that Huntress lady came to help, you still tried to stop those criminals even when it looked like nothing else could be done to stop them. Not a lot of people would have risked themselves to chase after them either. So, why wouldn't I want someone as awesome and nice as you as my friend?" She paused, looking down slightly at her hands in her lap which still held the last remnants of the cookie.

"I really don't know anyone out here in Vale other than my big sis, Yang, and you. And I'm not sure how long it'll be until I see Yang again, since she's kinda always busy dealing with whatever it is that she's looking into, like earlier tonight when she was doing… _whatever_ and got into that huge fight at the club. So it'd mean a lot to me if I could have at least one real friend while I'm here." She said sincerely, looking back at him with an imploring look in her eyes.

"…Of course, Ruby. How could I say no to an offer like that?" He said after a few moments of consideration, giving her a warm smile which was barely visible through the lone, ray of light from the over-hanging light bulb fixture which illuminated the dark, dusty room.

"Yaaayyy, thank you, thank you, thank you!" Ruby squealed in delight before launching herself from her seat and clinging to Gabriel in a tight hug, nearly knocking him from his seat. Unsure of what to do in this situation, Gabriel softly patted her back anxiously as he waited for her to release her grip on him. Meanwhile, the sound of a door sliding open sounded out, the two people in the room unaware of the sudden noise.

"I'm not interrupting anything, am I?" A new voice spoke up, causing both Ruby and Gabriel to look towards its source.

Standing at the doorway of the small room, Glynda Goodwitch fixed a half-curious/half-stern gaze at the two people in front of her. Recognizing what she meant, this caused the both of them to immediately disentangle from one another, both of them wearing embarrassed looks at being caught in what many would consider an intimate, but otherwise impulsive, embrace.

Then, being the first to get over their shared discomfort, Gabriel decided to speak up for the both of them. "No. Sorry, we kind of just got caught up in the moment." He said, rubbing the back of his head and sighing.

"Well if that's all that that was, then fine." She paused, looking at the two appraisingly before continuing on. "But, right now we have to address the main concern for why the two of you are here." Glynda said, moving forward towards the center of the room before leaning forward with her hands on the table.

"Of course, what did you need to know?" Gabriel asked her. Ruby meanwhile focused back on the situation at hand, her previous embarrassment seemingly forgotten for the time being as she listened to what the woman had to say.

"Well, first, we have to address tonight's events, starting with the both of you." She said, starting to circle around them while she pulled out her scroll from behind her back and expanded it, looking at its contents.

"Both of your actions are not going to be taken lightly. A lot of people were put at great risk tonight because of what you did, yourselves included." She lectured, continuing to pace back and forth across the room.

"They started it!" Ruby interjected, now seemingly more confident now that the focus was on something other than herself, at least indirectly.

"If it were up to me," Glynda said, seemingly ignoring Ruby's plea as she continued, ", you'd both be sent to your homes. With a pat on the back..."Glynda said, trailing off at the end. Hearing this, Ruby grew hopeful with the situation as she glanced at Gabriel happily before looking back to Glynda, whom continued. "…and a slap on the wrist." And with that, she quickly drew her whip, intent on snapping it near Ruby's hand which lay bare on the table.

Though, just was the whip was about to make contact with Ruby's hand, the end of the whip was caught by the hand of another, Gabriel's. With it still in his grip, Gabriel turned his head to look at the woman's stern gaze with an unflinching one of his own, where he then began to make his own opinion on the matter known to her.

"Now, there's no need for that. Besides, if there's anyone here that needs to be reprimanded, it's me. I was the greater danger and if my actions succeeded, that plane could have crashed in any number of ways, possibly even landing on someone's home. Ruby was just defending herself, she was being robbed when all of this started and if it wasn't for her those criminals would have made away with all that dust, and if they had gotten it who knows what type of damage could've been wrought had they succeeded? I'm the one at fault here, not Ruby. So, if you should have any issues with anybody here, it should be with _me_!" He said sternly, pointing a thumb back towards him with his free hand for emphasis before relinquishing his grip on the whip, allowing it to return back to Glynda.

Meanwhile, Ruby went slack-jawed at the praise and the blame he took for her. Unsure of how to deal with the situation for the moment, she decided to at least let him handle the precarious situation which continued to draw on and went back to comfort herself and continued nibbling on and finishing her giant cookie, allowing the other two people to continue their discussion.

"…While that may be all well and good Mr…"

"Van Helsing." Gabriel supplied in a neutral, almost cold, tone towards the woman. One which was not unnoticed but was otherwise ignored by the interrogator as she continued on with her statement.

"…Van Helsing. I'm afraid any repercussions either the state or I will be taking against you will have to be put on hold. For now, there is someone who wishes to speak with the both of you before any decisions are made regarding either of you." And with that said, she moved over to the side of the room, clearing up a view of the darkened doorway leading out of the room where the outline of a man started to take shape before coming into view.

The man before them had grey hair and wore green clothing consisting of: a dark-green button up vest, a green shirt below it along with a green scarf with a cross-shaped emblem on it and dark-colored pants. In one hand, the man held a plate of cookies whilst in the other he held a mug; though, whether the cup held water, coffee, tea or the very elixir to eternal life itself was unknown.

"Ruby Rose," The man said as he entered. Leaning in to get a good look at her, he continued, "You…have silver eyes." He finished lamely, his analysis of her features seemingly finished.

"…U-Um." Ruby said uncertainly, casting a quick glance to the side at Gabriel, who only gave a brief shrug in return, before looking back at the man in front of her. Meanwhile, Glynda walked up to the table, a scroll in hand which seemed to play video footage of the night's fight.

The man continued, "So, where did you learn to do this?" He asked, motioning to the video playing on the scroll beside him as Glynda held it up to the two.

"S-Signal Academy." She answered, unsure of where his line of questioning was going.

"They taught you to use one of the most dangerous weapons ever designed?" He inquired.

"Well, one teacher in particular." She recalled, a subtle tone of reminiscence entering her voice.

"I see…" He said as he set down the plate of cookies before Ruby, discreetly glancing towards Gabriel as he did so.

Looking uncertainly at the platter of cookies before her, she sent a quick glance to Gabriel, looking for his input whether she should try the cookies or not. He gave her a slight nod, and with her apprehension slightly abated, she went ahead and tried a cookie, stuffing the entire thing in her mouth. And with that, cookie-geddon was unleashed as Ruby continued to stuff herself silly, devouring them all one right after the other.

Apathetic to the occurrence happening before him, while to the side Gabriel looked on in astonishment as Ruby continued her unyielding assault on the cookies placed in front of her, Ozpin commented on her last point.

"It's just that I've only seen one other scythe wielder with that skill before. A dusty, old crow." The man said ominously.

Her cheeks stuffed to the brim, Ruby answered the man in a muffled tone, "Thwatsh mwei uncwoh grsh." She tried to say, before clearing her throat and swallowing the cookies that had previously stuffed her mouth and continued, "Sorry. That's my uncle Qrow. He's a teacher at Signal, I was complete garbage before he took me under his wing. Now I'm all like…" She continued the statement with a series of gestures and sounds of cliché Kung-Fu fighting moves, getting mixed reactions from everyone else in the room.

"So I've noticed." He added nonchalantly before continuing. "What is an adorable girl such as yourself doing at a school designed to train warriors?" He inquired calmly.

"I want to be a huntress." Ruby said in a calm yet firm voice, almost surprising Ozpin with the conviction it held, despite not showing anything to indicate otherwise on his expression.

"You want to slay monsters." He clarified/guessed, his hands steeped before him as he questioned her motives.

"Yeah. I only have two more years of training left at Signal, and then I'm going to apply to Beacon. See, my sister's starting there this year, and she's trying to become a huntress and I'm trying to become a huntress 'cause I want to help people. My parents always taught us to help others and I thought 'oh, might as well make a career out of it'." She giggled. "I mean the police are alright, but Huntsmen and Huntresses are just so much more romantic and exciting, cool…" The rest of her ramblings just devolved into excited squeals and giggles before finishing off with, "You know?" She asked excitedly.

Both of the matured individuals in the room looked impassively at the girl's eccentric explanation until the man suddenly decided to add. "Do you know who I am?".

"You're Professor Ozpin." She stated simply, "You're the Headmaster at Beacon."

He gave a short, amused snort before continuing with a simple, "Hello."

"Nice to meet you." She responded courteously.

Leaning in slightly, he asked her, "You want to come to my school?" He asked her, placing a hand on the middle of the table.

"More than anything." She answered dreamily, as if daydreaming about the day that she could finally make sure, concrete steps towards fulfilling her dream.

Looking back at his partner, Ozpin gave Glynda a look, one which she grunted at as if silently saying a reluctant 'Fine.', before he turned back to Ruby and gave her his answer. "Well okay." And with that, Ruby's fantasy of becoming a huntress was one step closer to becoming a reality.

Then, that excitement slightly waned at Ozpin's next words.

"Now your friend…he's another matter entirely." He said, turning his attention to the mysterious and silent individual at last. "I'm not sure who you are or why you're here with Ms. Rose, but it seems that the both of you are already acquainted from what I can tell."

"Yeah, this is my friend, Gabriel! He was the one who tried going after that helicopter, plane, thingy as it tried to get away and he almost would've got them if it wasn't for that one person who kept blocking all our attacks. Still, even though it didn't work out it was all pretty awesome!" Ruby said admiringly, making small sound effects as she replicated the swooshing sounds of flying and the booms of explosions as she 'recounted' the experience.

Giving a curious look to Ruby while also recalling details about the elusive, upsetting combatant given to him by his assistant during her own encounter against them, he then asked the young girl, "So you've known each other for a while then?"

"Well, not exactly. I mean, we kind of met twice before, but he's awesome and smart and cool. I mean, he can even do magic tricks!" She finished excitedly, bringing her hands in front of her and clenching them.

"Magic tricks? Don't you think friendships should be based more than just short-sighted camaraderie and 'magic tricks'?" Ozpin asked, raising an eyebrow as he steeped his hands together.

"Well yeah, but sometimes I like to think that if someone's a good person, why shouldn't they be a friend? And he's been nothing but nice to me and always tries to help when he can and I like hanging out with him. We get along pretty well and he can even help me fight bad guys and stuff, so that makes him all good in my book." She finished, nodding to Ozpin resolutely before crossing her arms in front of her.

"Hmm, very well. What do you have to say about all of this, Mr. Van Helsing?" He asked, turning to the man in question once again.

"I will be the first to admit, while my friendship with Ruby is still fairly new, that doesn't mean it's any less true. Because, from what I can tell of Ruby already, there is no truer person you can call a friend than her, and there's no way I'd ever do anything to break the trust she so freely gave to me already. She deserves better than that." Gabriel explained, leaning forward onto the table and looking right at Ozpin with a fierce but controlled look, unflinching in its intensity.

"Is that right, then?" Ozpin asked, his tone neutral, indicating neither belief nor disbelief at the young man's response before continuing. "So when did you two first meet then?"

"We met several days ago, at one of the forests in Patch. Ruby was fighting some of those Grimm, Beowolves if I recall their name correctly; impressively I might add. In the end, she didn't need even an ounce of help from me. I just kind of…introduced myself after dealing with the last of them for her before I had to leave. We didn't meet again until earlier today where I encountered her sister who'd just taken care of some business and by fortuity happened upon Ruby as she wandered about, looking for her sister. We got reacquainted and went to find a shop I was looking for. Then it got robbed and the rest is history." Gabriel elaborated, leaning back in his chair as he crossed his arms over one another, awaiting the man's response.

"Hmm, well done then. If what you say is true, then you must have traveled from Patch all the way here at the very least. But we have no record of such travels or any record of identification other than what you have supplied to us in this discussion." He paused, mulling over something while sipping audibly from his mug. "Are you by any chance aware of the recent sightings of a being some people are referring to as 'The Archangel'? Apparently, cases have come up where, on certain particular instances, Human and Faunus alike have found themselves in dire situations involving Grimm, only for a what some people consider a 'Guardian Angel' to arrive and save them from such danger before flying off to parts unknown. Some of the qualities, if not all of them, which were reported by witnesses seem to correlate with some of your own shown during the final bit of that skirmish along the rooftops earlier tonight. Such an occurrence does beg the question if the two of you are connected."

He paused to get his breath then took a quick sip of his drink, adding to the already palpable silence now found all throughout the room.

"Perhaps one could even go as far as to say that you both are in fact one in the same." Ozpin explained, fixing a look towards Gabriel over the edge of his mug as he held it near eye level, drinking from it once more as his point was made.

Sighing once he knew his actions finally caught up to him, he knew there was no chance he could remain anonymous any longer, not with this man.

"Well there's obviously no point in trying to hide it … so yes, I'm what people are referring to as 'The Archangel'. And the reason you can't find any form of identification for me is because there simply _isn't_ any. As far as you know, I didn't exist until over a week ago…" Gabriel said cryptically, lowering his head slightly as he sighed lowly to himself in resignation.

"Hmm." Ozpin responded curiously, drinking out of his mug quietly before deciding on a consensus for the time being. "Glynda, could you please escort Ms. Rose out into the hall. I'd prefer to speak to Mr. Van Helsing in private."

"Of course, Headmaster." She said stoically before nodding briefly and turning her attention to one Ruby Rose. "Now, come along, Ms. Rose."

"Wait. Gabriel, what's going on?" Ruby asked, turning to look at him fully from her seat at the table.

"Don't worry, Ruby. Nothing bad is going to happen. But, I think it'd be a good idea if you just listen to them and head outside for now. I'll be out there soon enough." He said, trying to ease Ruby's slight anxiousness.

"Yeah…okay. But just be careful alright? I _really_ want to go to this school, but I don't want to lose a friend along the way. I couldn't handle it…" She trailed off, looking despondently at him.

"It'll be fine, little red. I promise." He said, giving her a soft smile which could be seen as he turned his head upwards to look at her slightly yet refusing to lift his head up fully to look at her, or anyone else in the room.

"…Okay, but only because you promised. You better not break it." She murmured before being lead out into the hall by the Huntress of the group, the door sliding shut behind them as they left.

With the two women out of the room, both figures sat in silence for a minute, lost in their own thoughts; Ozpin continuing to sip at his mug whilst staring at the man in front of him, while Gabriel drummed his fingers on the table, waiting for the inevitable array of questions the man across from him was sure to have.

Then, Ozpin broke the silence at last.

"So, who are you really?"

And so, Gabriel went on to explain his life, his story, starting from where he came from, where it eventually took him and how he came to arrive where he was now. Though many of the details of the story more than likely went over the knowledgeable man's head, what piqued the listener's attention the most was when he learned that the traveler before him was not an international traveler of their realm, but rather one who had crossed entire dimensions, universes even, all in the pursuit of some unspoken journey that even the traveler himself had no real direction to follow along with. And as the man continued to tell his tale, from what he could see from the man before him, all of what he seemed to recount and explain seemed to be true, from detailed recollections of journeys past to the skills and spoils he gained along the way. And with that, as the moments passed and the story began to wane, Ozpin could get a good understanding of the traveler before him and what he intended to do, not just for himself, but for the entire world before him.

'Perhaps he can be the catalyst this world needs to bring about the end to the madness which continues to plague it. Now, to find the best way to make the most of such an opportunity…' And on that note, the young man finally finished recounting his story, leaving off on the point of finding himself in a snowy forest and its lone, red wanderer within, and concluding his story with but a single question to the sole interrogator in the room.

"And so, despite all that I've said and done up until now, the final question remains: Do you believe me?"

Taking a minute to mull everything over, not once taking his eyes off the person in front of him, Ozpin continued to take an occasionally, composed swig of his drink from his mug before he finally came up with a response to the man's question.

"Yes. Though it was quite a bit to handle, and while anyone else would say that you made the entire thing up or would simply label you as deluded and try to have you shipped off to live your life in forced solitude. In relation to a world where living nightmares are an everyday reality and there are individuals born with the innate potential to harness what could otherwise be considered to be supernatural abilities, such a journey does not as impossible as some would like to believe. However," He said, pausing. ", while I would like to believe that what you've just told me was indeed true, what proof do you have to prove that you are indeed who you say you are, rather than just a relator of these events?" Ozpin asked coolly, setting down his mug on the table between them. Though he asked this seemingly inane question despite all that he figured of the person before him, Ozpin felt it was a legitimate concern, considering that he was preparing to invest a great deal amount of his time and effort in utilizing this valuable chance before him to the best of his ability, but only if such an opportunity was indeed authentic, which he would soon find out, one way or another.

Once Ozpin voiced his concern aloud, rather than prove his authenticity through verbal reasoning alone, Gabriel felt it would be best to visiblyreinforce the validity of his identity. Deciding which course to go along with, he channeled some of semblance, if it could really be considered that at this point, into his arm, turning it transparent with dark energy layered on his skin and pulled out his pocket-watch, channeling a slight bit of energy into it, prepared to activate it but refraining from doing so as he looked up at Ozpin.

"I'm going to need you to trust me on this. I need you to touch the device in order for you to see what it can do." Gabriel relayed, to which Ozpin went up and reluctantly touched the device with his hand and waited. As the moments passed, Ozpin calmed down slightly as he noticed nothing particularly harmful or hazardous had yet to happen, if it were to at all.

With that condition met, while Gabriel held the device in his right hand, with his left hand he grabbed the mug, Ozpin reluctantly parting from it with slight hesitation, and held it a couple of feet above the table. Then, he dropped it, activating the device simultaneously as the object started to fall.

And with that, time stopped for the both of them.

Ozpin gazed at the halted form of his once momentarily free-falling mug and reached out with his free hand to touch it. The familiar object spun around in mid-air in its spot, the liquid in the cup floating and sloshing around slightly as the cup was flipped upside down and moved from side-to-side before being set right-side-up in its original place once again after scooping up all the liquid that was floating around in the air.

Once that curious little display was over and done with, at the click of a button, time resumed.

With his precious cup once again safely in hand, Ozpin brought the fine piece of ceramic-ware to his lips and promptly took a sip from it, nodding appraisingly to himself once he was well and truly convinced of the potential of the individual beside him. Now, he could finally get things started where they needed to go.

"Now that was an insightful experience. So it seems you are who you say you are." He sipped at his' drink once again before continuing. "Though that begs the question: Why are you here? Someone of your caliber is usually found leading armies or starting revolutions. And instead we find you in the company of a fair, young maiden in the aftermath of a robbery."

"Well, in a way, I am. People here become Huntsmen and Huntresses to protect people from the darkness around them, becoming a light for the world to follow. I want to do something like that- to save whatever people that I can and continue to try to protect them until either they can protect themselves or until the evil plaguing their lives has passed. I'm not from around here, so my geopolitical knowledge is lacking and I have absolutely no idea or plan on what I can do here besides being a rogue hero acting freely throughout the world when no one else can, even at the cost of my own reputation at times if need be." Gabriel answered.

"That's very noble of you. But, I believe you can do better than just act as an uncertain element that would worry the powers of Remnant and its people. If the world thinks that you're an unrestrained individual with no ties to anybody, then people will think of you as nothing more than a vigilante and you could easily end up polarizing the people into two kinds of groups-those for you and those who would seek to stop you. Then your freedom to act independently may in itself become a liability which holds you back. But, I think I may have a solution to ease such worries." Ozpin said, once again sitting in his seat across the table whilst setting down his mug and steeping his fingers in front of his face.

"What did you have in mind?" Gabriel asked, crossing his arms as he awaited the instructor's reply.

"Would you like to become a Huntsman?"

"A Huntsman? But wouldn't I need credentials and other forms of proof of my eligibility to even be considered for Hunter training? At least, that's what I've gathered here and there during my travels about how the process goes." Gabriel asked, confused at how this would all go about.

"Normally, yes. But given that I'm the Headmaster of Beacon Academy, where I have the final say in whatever major decisions are made there, I can make a few exceptions to some of the steps required to participate in the training at my academy. We can work out the details of it at a later time but for now I simply want to know: would you like to attend Beacon?" The aged man asked, putting his hands together as he awaited the man's answer.

"Of course, it'd be an honor. Besides, Ruby seems to like the idea of going there, so I want to see what all the excitement is about." Gabriel answered simply.

"Then I guess we're done here. Now, I think we should head out into the hall and meet up with our two colleagues. And between waiting on you and waiting with my colleague, Ms. Rose must be feeling quite anxious at the moment." Ozpin said as he grinned to himself in amusement as he got up to exit and turned towards Gabriel, supplying one last detail. "Oh, and you need not worry about any charges that may have arisen due to the events earlier tonight. As of the end of this discussion, your crimes and charges have been pardoned. Now, let's get going, shall we?" Ozpin clarified, heading on through the door before waiting on the other side of it for Gabriel.

"Of course, and thank you very much for doing that, sir." Gabriel said, getting up from his seat and exiting the room, falling in step with Ozpin.

"You're welcome, Mr. Van Helsing. Besides, it's not like I could have any of my students marked as felons, now could I?" Ozpin said, glancing towards the man beside him, his eyes alight with amusement on his otherwise stoic face, as they both walked further down the dimly lit hall.

"True enough. Now, where are Ms. Goodwitch and Ruby?" Gabriel asked after not seeing either in the hall so far.

"Glynda probably took Ms. Rose to the lobby of the building, more than likely knowing the decision I would come to concerning you. Ah, speaking of, there they are now." Ozpin said, gesturing his mug ahead of them to the end of the hall which opened up into a lobby, a few officers and other agents moving throughout the enlarged room while they filled out their daily, or rather nightly, tasks and duties. And in plain view of the exiting duo were the two women in question.

As they entered the room, Gabriel noticed that Ruby seemed to be slightly uneasy with the atmosphere around her, Glynda being as much of a comfort to her as one would expect. Though soon enough, as Ruby continued to glance randomly throughout the room she spotted the two men exiting the hall and rushed up to Gabriel and started to bombard him with questions.

"So what happened?! Are you in trouble? They aren't going to lock you up right? Please tell me you didn't take all the blame for tonight, did you?" Ruby questioned before stopping as Gabriel raised a hand in front of her.

"No, everything is just fine, Ruby. In fact, we've both been pardoned, so we don't have anything to worry about!" Gabriel explained, an almost chipper tone entering his voice as he said this.

With that clarified, Ruby gave him a large smile before saying, "Oh that's good! I was starting to get worried, and being in this place wasn't helping." She said before leaning in and cupping a hand to Gabriel and whispering conspiringly, "Besides, Goodwitch kind of scares me. She's mean." She said uneasily, casting a quick glance over her shoulder at said woman before looking back towards him.

"Yeah, she seems to take her job and herself very seriously. So let's try to stay off her bad side, alright?" Gabriel said in a low whisper, in which Ruby nodded and he continued. "Oh, and guess what? I'm going to Beacon too!"

At this, she paused, her arms dropping to her side lazily as her eyes widened dramatically before a large grin made its way onto her face as well. "That…that's AMAZING! We're both going to learn how to kick some serious butt and I can already have a friend I can work with while I go there. This is going to be soooo awesome!" Ruby squealed.

Just as Gabriel was about to respond to her, Ozpin stepped up next to them with Glynda in tow. Once he gained their attention, he spoke up. "Now that you've both been reunited and updated on the situation, are you ready to start your training?"

"Of course!" Both of the younger pair said in unison with equal amounts of excitement.

Smiling at the action, Ozpin simply responded to them with, "Alright then."

And with that, the journey to becoming a Huntsman and Huntress, respectively, had already begun.

* * *

 **(Some days later, Morning/Noon-ish, Location-Airship)**

Once both Gabriel and Ruby arrived on the airship, they wandered onto a particular section of the ship made especially for the convenience of its passengers, the walls of the room they were in being comprised mainly of a glass of some sort, giving the passengers an unobstructed view of the city around the ship.

As they both wandered onto the section, they noticed there were several other individuals around them whom were also heading to attend the academy as well, though one of the people was someone they hadn't quite expected but were both quite familiar with and it showed when that person greeted them.

"Ruby! What are you doing here?" Yang said, jogging over to them from her side of the room. "Oh, hey Gabriel." She said more as an after-thought than anything before refocusing her attention to Ruby. Gabriel, not particularly bothered by her indifference to his company, simply nodded at her otherwise blithe reply before gazing around the cabin around them, taking in the details of the interior space of the aircraft.

Startled by her sister's appearance in the otherwise quiet space, Ruby collected herself after a moment before she quickly greeted her sister and relayed the events of the other night to Yang. Said woman listened quite intently to the story, looking towards Ruby's newfound friend whenever he was mentioned, though what shocked the blonde fighter the most was when Ruby told her of the two's newfound friendship but didn't say anything aloud to him or her about the decision, only fixing him with a hard look that promised eternal misery if he strayed out of line before looking back to her sister as she went on with her story, finishing off with the decision the headmaster made to enroll both her and her friend as students at the academy.

With Yang properly filled-in on the situation, she rushed up to her sister and gave her a great big hug, saying, "Oh I can't believe my baby sister is going to beacon with me. This is the best day ever!" Yang exclaimed, crushing Ruby in a sisterly embrace.

"Please stop." Ruby croaked out, promptly being released from the tight hug.

"I'm so proud of you." Yang said rather…proudly, looking at her younger sister with no small amount of pride.

"Really sis, it was nothing." Ruby said, trying to placate her sister's praise over her actions.

"What do you mean? It was incredible! Everyone at Beacon is going to think you're the bee's knees!" Yang chirped, looking minutely at the people behind them for emphasis before turning back to Ruby.

"I don't want to be the bee's knees, okay? I don't want to be any kind of knees. I just want to be a normal girl, with normal knees." Ruby finished, looking despondent, not quite getting the figurative language Yang had used.

To the side, Gabriel chuckled good-naturedly at Ruby's misunderstanding of Yang's figurative use of speech before silencing himself and keeping an eye on a particular individual who was wobbling around towards their general vicinity, looking a bit greener than normal.

Slightly confused at her sister's lack of excitement, Yang asked, "What's with you? Aren't you excited?"

"Of course I'm excited," Ruby clarified. "I just. I got moved ahead two years. I don't want people to think I'm special or anything." Ruby said tiredly, letting out her hidden distress over her sudden presence at the institution.

Yang wandered behind her before reaching out an arm across Ruby's shoulders, bringing her in for a loose embrace and saying, "But you ARE special." Though whatever else Yang was going to say was cut short as a news bulletin rang out within the ship, coming from a monitor display nearby, once which both sisters turned to now that their points had been made to one another.

" _The robbery was led by nefarious criminal, Roman Torchwick, who continues to evade authorities. If you have any information on his whereabouts, please contact the Vale Police Department. Back to you Lisa."_ The announcer finished, transferring to a news feed with an anchorwoman with white hair, keen eyes and a suit. After a brief pause as the feed transitioned, the woman then went on to continue the broadcast.

"Thank you, Cyril. In other news, this Saturday, Faunus civil rights protests turned dark, when members of The White Fang disrupted the ceremony. The once-peaceful organization has now disrupted—" The feed was abruptly cut-off as a priority announcement for the passengers of the vessel came through. The speaker being someone both Ruby and Gabriel were already familiar with.

Appearing via hologram, Huntress Glynda Goodwitch started her introductory announcement. "Hello and welcome to Beacon."

"Who's that?" Yang interjected.

"My name is Glynda Goodwitch." The hologram-video unintentionally supplied.

"Oh." Yang concluded, her question appeased while the hologram of Goodwitch continued.

"You are among a privileged few who have received the honor of being selected to attend this prestigious academy. Our world is experiencing an incredible time of peace, and as future Huntsmen and Huntresses, it is you duty to uphold it. You have demonstrated the courage needed for such a task. And now it is _our_ turn to provide you with the knowledge and the training to protect our world." Glynda rattled off before her announcement ended and her hologram faded out of existence. Leaving the cabin silent once more until chatter once again arose between its occupants.

"Oh wow." Ruby said in wonder, a smile finally making its way onto her face for the first time since the start of the trip. With renewed optimism, Ruby ventured to the large glass window at the side of the room and looked out below at the city before her, gazing at it in exuberant wonder.

"Look. You can see Signal from here." Ruby commented, looking out into the view provided by the airborne vessel along with Yang and Gabriel standing on either side of her.

"I guess home isn't too far after all." She said, pleasantly surprised by the fact. Then, Yang affectionately laid an arm on Ruby's shoulder.

"Beacon's our home now."

Then the sound of moaning and groaning reached their ears, causing all three in the group to turn towards the noise. Off to the side, a young man was barely maintaining his integrity as he tried not to let loose the contents of his stomach out all over the place due to the air-sickness caused by the flight. A moment later, he stumbled across the room in the hopes of finding relief from his abominable condition, passing behind the group as he made his way through.

'Aww geez. I've been there before. Not quite with air travel, but still… ***sigh*** I should probably help the poor guy out before things get any messier.' Gabriel thought tiredly as he made his way to help out the young man.

Behind him, Yang added after seeing the guy's state, "Well, I guess the view's not for everyone."

"It was a nice moment while it lasted." Ruby commented in turn.

"I wonder who we're going to meet?" Yang wondered.

"I just hope they're better than vomit-boy." Ruby commented as she looked on at the miserable guy as Gabriel reached him.

"Here, use this." Gabriel stated, materializing a tin bucket and shoving it in the guy's arms. Immediately, the boy hunched forward and upchucked torrentially into the bucket. The sounds he made being anything but pleasant.

"Yeah, just let it all out. You'll get used to it eventually." Gabriel said as he patted the guy's back softly, referring to the sensation of flying rather than the act of…spewing.

After a minute of retching and dry-heaves, the guy breathed heavily for a few moments before saying a shaky and tired, "Thanks." Afterwards, he went off to the side of the room and took a seat to recover from his horrid experience as he tried to endure the rest of the ride, keeping the bucket with him all the while.

With his peace made, Gabriel returned back to the pair of sisters who were looking on curiously at the interaction between the two boys. As Yang turned her attention back to the view, Ruby decided to comment on his actions.

"That was a really nice thing you did for him."

"Yeah, well I couldn't let him embarrass himself further by making a mess all over the place. And besides, I've been in that type of situation before too." Gabriel elaborated, looking back at the guy as he sat silently, yet uneasily, in the same spot as before, trying his best to maintain whatever pride he still had left.

"Really? How?" Ruby asked him, tilting her head slightly to the side curiously.

Turning back over to Ruby, he answered her. "Well, it was actually sea-sickness. You see, I used to work for this boating crew and we…" Gabriel went on, explaining a bit about his first job and his experiences in it. And while he kept many of the geographical names of the locations out, Ruby continued to listen intently to the stories he told her about his travels, her eyes becoming larger with every passing story. Yang, meanwhile, continued to gaze out at the view outside of the ship, occasionally listening in on the story but otherwise keeping herself entertained with the view passing beneath them.

With that, the ship carried them towards their destination, drifting lazily through the air as they made their way to its sole destination.

* * *

 **A/N: Well, that's that! Lookin' forward to any feedback on the story you guys may have on it and I'll try to update as soon as possible, whenever I feel the chapter is ready. Though it should only be a couple days, so until then: Read, review and return for more if you liked it! ^-^**


	3. Crater Face

**Disclaimer: Don't own the RWBY property, sorry…**

* * *

"Every child is full of promise, but you have to understand that their potential can be for great good _or_ for great evil, respectively. And, ultimately, it's their choice on what they choose to live for, even if it means dying for it. All we can ever hope to do is guide them."–G.V.H.

* * *

In the skies above Beacon academy, several types of aircraft could be seen as they hovered in the air. Some were on patrol or surveillance of the area against any type of Grimm subterfuges or ambushes. Others, however, ferried along numerous individuals of promise, also known as students. These students were here, obviously, to attend the academy itself, to gain the skills necessary to ensure the security of both the state and its populace. But first, before any of that could truly start, they had to get to orientation and while some were confident of where they needed to go, others were less so and had to more or less figure out how they were supposed to find their way through the luscious grounds of the academy, thus bringing us to the predicament forthcoming…

Above one of the landing pads, a large vessel descended towards the platform before landing/docking. There, after going through the proper procedures and maintenances of landing, the vessel opened its bay doors, thus allowing the students within to stream out excitedly into the outer courtyards of the campus. Some of them were alone, some were in pairs and others were in groups.

And one of these groups held some very familiar individuals.

Three individuals walked out in a line beside one another, walking out and into the open space of the academy before them. Minutes later as they walked along the paved road leading to the academy proper, they paused at one of the stone circles that branched out to other paths going to and from the academy, gazing at the clock tower in wonder. Then, one of them, Ms. Xiao Long in particular, spoke up.

"The view from Vale's got nothing on this." She said as she crossed her arms.

Meanwhile, Ruby gazed in wonderment at the academy around them, taking in the sight of so many astonishing new types and variations of weaponry as they were carried around by their owners.

"Guys, that kid's got a classical staff!" Ruby said in wonderment before catching sight of another weapon, this one carried by another, female colleague as she wandered on by. "Ah, she's got a fire sword." Ogling the item without reserve, eventually causing her to drift away from the duo in her reverie, causing Yang to have to grab her by the nape of her hooded outfit before she could wander too far away from them.

" ." Ruby said in complaint as she was dragged back by Yang by her hood before being set back down.

"Easy there, little sister. They're just weapons." Yang said, trying to downplay Ruby's apparent excitement over something as trivial as physical possessions.

" _Just_ weapons? They're an extension of ourselves. They're a part of us." Ruby tried to reason, before continuing. "Oh, they're so cool." She said in awe, gushing while bringing her hands up to her face as she began to lose herself in thought over the countless permutations of weapons imaginable as well as those found drifting all around her.

"Well why can't you swoon over your own weapon? Aren't you happy with it?" Yang asked, taking a brief glance at the weapon strapped onto Ruby's hip.

At that instance, the sound of Crescent Rose extending was heard as Ruby brought it out and…nuzzled it.

"Of course I'm happy with Crescent Rose." Ruby acknowledged, "I just really like seeing new ones. It's like meeting new people, but better." Ruby finished dejectedly.

"Ruby, come on." Yang said, tugging Ruby's hood over her head as she teased her, "Why don't you go try and make some friends of your own?" Yang said optimistically.

 ***cough* *cough*** But before the conversation could further go on, the sound of faux coughing caught their attention, causing both girls to turn around.

"I am still here you know." Gabriel said, perhaps a slight bit more miffed than usual, all things considered.

"Oh, don't get me wrong." Yang said in a placating manner, "You're a great friend and all, but she's going to need to know a few more people than just you."

"Why's that?" Ruby interjected, causing Yang to turn her attention back onto her. Meanwhile, Gabriel tried not to be too offended by the comment, understanding Yang's concern over her sister, though that didn't keep him from crossing his' arms in slight contempt.

"Well, for one, you might not always be going to the same classes together. Second, it's always good to have a few people to fall back on in case you need answers or advice for projects and stuff. Besides, you need some friends other than guys. I mean, who else are you going to ask for personal advice? Like girl problems." Yang explained.

"But, why would I need other friends when I have you two to help me?" Ruby questioned.

"Well, you see my friends are here now. I gotta catch up with them, see ya. Bye!" Yang said quickly, rushing off with her friends as they suddenly arrived, creating a cloud of dust in their wake as they sped off away from the duo.

Spinning in place due to Yang's quick departure, Ruby slowly whirled around and around before coming to a halt as Gabriel gripped her from her shoulders, keeping her from falling over as she continued to question the departing Yang about the ins and outs of the school.

"Wait, where are you going? Are we supposed to go to our dorms? Where are our dorms? Do we have dorms? I don't know what I'm doing." Ruby said confusedly, swirls still apparent in her eyes from her apparent dizziness. Though, in her delirium, as Gabriel tried to get a grip on her to stabilize her, Ruby clumsily stumbled to the side, causing one of her legs to knock against a conveniently located stack of cases on a mobile-rack traveling next to them, causing the cases to fall over, their contents falling out along with them.

"What are you doing?!" An astonished voice asked beside them, the tone of the voice indicating it came from a young woman. Hearing the voice, both people turned to the girl in question.

The young girl appeared to have naturally snow-white hair (no pun intended…maybe), a petite figure was dressed in an all-white outfit consisting of: a white dress with red lining underneath it, the dress flaring out slightly into a skirt. She was wearing boots that went up to the middle of her calves, their color scheme complementing the dress that she wore. Finally, a majestic-looking rapier was strapped to the girl's waist, ready to be drawn for use at a moment's notice. Marring her otherwise delicate features was a slight scar that ran down along the girl's left eye. However, the rest of the girl's face, unlike her otherwise seemingly majestic features, was fixed in a displeased grimace as she looked on at the duo.

During this brief inspection, Ruby responded back to the girl's query and muttered a quiet, "Sorry." in apology over unintended action and the consequences it created.

"Sorry?" The girl in white repeated. "Do you have any idea of the damage you could have caused?"

"Uhh." Ruby uttered, bending down to pick up one of the cases before it was snagged back by the girl in white as she opened it.

Taking the case and opening it, the white-garbed girl angrily said, "Give me that! This is dust! Mined and purified from the Schnee Quarry."

"Uhh?" Ruby mumbled, bringing a hand up as she rubbed her head in bewilderment.

"What are you, brain dead? Dust! Fire, water, lightning, energy!" She rattled off, angrily shaking the vial in her hand as she went through the explanation. Meanwhile, the open top of the vial allowed _dust_ particles to drift out into the air, causing it to unintentionally surround the two individuals in front of her.

Continuing on in her rant, the girl still continued to wave around the exposed _Dust_ vial in her hand, further contaminating the air. "What do you have to say for yourself?"

Holding his' breath since the dust approached, Gabriel was protected by the irritating effects the dust would have had, had he breathed it in. However, Ruby wasn't quite as lucky. Having taken a whiff of the red fumes in the air due to the white-themed girl's actions, Ruby began to show the signs that she was about to sneeze, and with this much _Dust_ in the air around them, the effects would be combustive, to put it lightly. So, taking quick action to avert the impending crisis, Gabriel once again griped Ruby by the shoulders and promptly turned her away from both the girl in white and himself.

An instance passed before the sound of a feminine sneeze was heard followed by the booming sound of a sizeable explosion.

In the area in front of Ruby, where there had once been pristine stone pavement was now stone marred with scorch marks, the girl herself still quite woozy as she continued wobbling side to side after the spontaneously combustive reaction, the two people behind her being slightly shaken from the force of the explosion as well; luckily for them all, aside from their varying levels of disorientation, they all seemed no worse for wear.

Meanwhile, the source of this crisis, the red _Dust_ vial, flew through the air before landing on the ground with a quiet 'clink', rolling towards the idle pair of feet belonging to a fourth individual standing a short distance off. Sensing the item as it rolled up to her, a familiar girl in black and white picked up the vial, all the while keeping her focus solely on the brown book in her other hand. Though, once the item was recovered, she turned her attention to the container in her hands before focusing in on the sound of angry shouting nearby.

"Unbelievable! This is exactly the kind of thing I was talking about!" The white-clad girl said, her anger all but palpable.

"I'm really, really sorry." Ruby apologized, poking her pointer fingers together nervously.

Grunting in irritation, the girl in white continued. "You complete dolt! What are you-"

"Hey." A voice said sternly beside them, causing both girls to look to the guy beside them. "Now that's enough. The name-calling was a little uncalled for, especially for somebody of your stature. Besides, this was an accident and she already apologized, so lay off." Gabriel said, pointing a finger at the white-clad girl.

"That's not what this is about!" She said irritatingly. "She could have gotten somebody seriously injured because of her carelessness!"

"If there's anyone being careless around here, it's _you_. You were the one waving around an open vial of _Dust_ and causing the fumes to float around everywhere!" He pointed out.

 ***Gasp*** "How dare you blame _me_ for all of this! Do you even know who I am?" She asked in incredulity, putting her hands on her hips.

"Weiss Schnee, Heiress of the Schnee Dust Company." A new female voice interjected, seeming to be slightly more mature in tone than the others present. Interrupted briefly from their quarrel, all three people looked toward the new approaching figure in black.

"It also happens that the company is one of the largest producers of energy propellant in the world." The new arrival finished.

"Finally, some recognition!" The now-identified Weiss Schnee boasted.

Unfortunately, the girl in black wasn't quite finished. "The same company infamous for its controversial labor forces and questionable business partners." She finished critically.

"What- How dare-" The heiress questioned, irritated by this distasteful take on her family's reputation.

To the side, Ruby smiled smugly and chuckled whilst Gabriel stood beside her as he looked on at the heiress while his' head side-to-side in contempt.

The heiress stalked towards the informer, but rather than getting into a quarrel with said woman, the heiress simply reached down and snatched the vial of red dust in the woman's hand before she strode off towards the academy without another word. Meanwhile, a couple of the heiress' assistants came up behind the group and gathered the spilt cases of dust around them before they too left, following behind their employer, being much more mindful with their client's precious cargo.

The three continued to look on as the girl stormed off angrily before Ruby spoke up, "I promise I'll make this up to you!" She yelled to the departing girl, though it seemed to fall on deaf ears if the Schnee Heiress' reaction, or rather lack thereof, was any indication.

Watching Weiss leave, Ruby could only sigh to herself at the trouble she was already seeming to find herself in right off the bat. "I guess I'm not the only one having a rough first day." She said tiredly, though that temperament soon lightened as she turned to the other girl beside her. "So! What's—" Ruby began to say before cutting herself off as she noticed that the girl in black had already begun walking away.

Seemingly exhausted from the recent events, Ruby collapsed onto the ground despondently and laid there, sprawled on her back. "Welcome to Beacon.". She said, her voice quite glum. However, noticing this as well as having observed it all as it transpired, Gabriel took the few steps necessary to reach the downed girl until he stood right above her. And, wanting to improve her current mood as best he could, he gazed at her and said:

"Come on, get up Ruby. None of this was your fault, so cheer up. Besides, it's only the first day. Things will get better soon enough. I mean, you still have me, right?" Gabriel asked, reaching a hand down to help Ruby up.

"Yeah, I guess you're right." She said, taking his' hand and picking herself up off the cold, hard ground and dusting her skirt off.

"Atta girl, now come on, we should get going before the orientation starts." He said, patting the dust and dirt off her back before motioning for her to follow him.

"Oh yeah, I almost forgot about that! Let's hurry or we might be late!" Ruby said worriedly, already getting ready to make a run for the buildings ahead of them to make up for the time lost since their arrival.

"Hey, wait up! Can I tag along?" A new voice spoke up, male this time around.

Turning to face the newcomer, both people looked to see a boy with blonde hair and white armor with a sword at the waist of his' jean pants walking towards them, waving a hand to get their attention.

"Yeah, the more the merrier." Ruby said, nodding at the boy. A motion mirrored by Gabriel as well. Then, suddenly seeming to recognize the approaching figure, she quickly added: "Wait, aren't you the guy that threw up on the ship?"

"…I don't want to talk about it." The guy said, looking down at the ground sheepishly and rubbing the back of his head at the mention of the uncomfortable experience.

* * *

 **(Later, Beacon Campus)**

Along the winding narrow paths of Beacon academy, a trio of young individuals walked along, talking amongst one another as they went along.

"All I'm saying is that motion sickness is a much more common problem than people let on!" Jaune reasoned.

"Look, I'm sorry. Vomit boy was the first thing that came to mind." Ruby said, defending her previous labeling of him.

"Oh yeah? What if I called you: crater face?" Jaune said defensively.

"Hey! That explosion was an accident!" Ruby defended.

"Well, the name's Jaune Arc. Short, sweet, rolls off the tongue. Ladies love it." Jaune boasted.

"Do they?" Ruby asked skeptically, looking over to Gabriel over to her right conspiringly.

"They will!" Jaune defended, seeing the girl's look before deflating slightly. "Well, I hope they will. I mean, my mom always says that…never mind." He said, waving a hand to dismiss the unsaid idea.

Laughing uncomfortably at the awkward atmosphere, Ruby switched the conversation to a topic she was far more comfortable with. "So, I got this thing." She said, brandishing out and extending her weapon of choice, the scythe/gun known as: _Crescent Rose._

"Whoa! Is that a scythe?" Jaune asked cautiously, keeping a fair amount of distance between the weapon and himself as he observed it.

"It's also a customizable, high-impact sniper rifle." Ruby said proudly, showing off the rifle's mechanisms in particular to him.

"A wha—" Jaune asked confusedly, not quite as familiar with the language of weapons as Ruby.

Chambering/cocking the weapon, Ruby clarified, "It's also a gun."

"Oh, that's cool!" He said, finally understanding her point.

"So what do you got?" Ruby asked, peeking over to examine the weapon holstered on Jaune's waist.

"Oh! Uh, I-I got this sword." He said timidly, unsheathing the mentioned weapon from its place on his' belt and showing it to Ruby. Though, the sword itself was fairly unremarkable.

"Oooh." Ruby said, amazed by the modest weapon.

"Yeah, I got a shield too." He said as he also expanded the previously compacted shield that he was carrying with him into its full form—the item being around four square feet, or approximately one square meter, in diameter.

"So, what do they do?" Ruby asked, touching the shield which incidentally caused it to compact itself and slip away from Jaune's grip, causing him to chase after it as it bounced around slightly before he was finally able to catch it.

"The-the shield gets smaller, so when I get tired of carrying it, I can just…put it away." Jaune finished lamely.

"But, wouldn't it weight the same?" Ruby asked, seeing a hole in his' logic.

Sagging down in defeat, Jaune conceded to the point. "Yeah, it does."

Giggling, Ruby continued. "I'm kind of a dork when it comes to weapons. I guess I did go a little overboard in designing it." She admitted, referring to _Crescent Rose_.

"Wait, you made that?" Jaune asked, unsure of how somebody so young could successfully make something so complex.

"Of course! All students at Signal forge their own weapons. Didn't you make yours?" Ruby asked in confusion.

"It's a hand-me-down." Jaune clarified. "My Great-Great-Grandfather used it to fight in the war."

"Sounds like a family heirloom to me." Ruby stated, chuckling a bit before continuing. "Well I like it. Not many people have an appreciation for the classics these days."

"Yeah. The Classics." Jaune said, trailing off.

"Hey Gabriel, what about you?...Gabriel?" Ruby asked, but when she didn't get an answer she turned to the side to see why her friend hadn't answered only to notice that he was no longer standing there at her side, causing her to look around every which way as she tried to find him. "Hey, where'd he go?" She asked Jaune.

"Your friend? I don't know, I thought he was just behind us or something. He was just here a second ago." Jaune said uncertainly, trying to help Ruby find him by looking around as well.

Just as Ruby was really going to start freaking out, a hand tapped her on the shoulder from behind, causing her to quickly turn around. Standing there was none other than the source of their quickly developing worries-Gabriel.

"Gabriel?! Where the fuzz were you?! I was starting to get worried something bad happened to you!" Ruby exclaimed as she gripped the front of his' cloak dramatically, anger quickly replacing her worry from moments earlier.

"Yeah, what happened? One second you were walking along with us, then the next you were gone?" Jaune said, raising an eyebrow and crossing his' arms.

"Sorry about that. Just went looking around for the building we needed to find for the orientation." Gabriel said simply, gripping Ruby's hands and removing them from his' cloak.

"Why didn't you just say something? We could have just looked for it together." Ruby asked, almost hurt by the fact that he didn't consider asking them to help.

"I move faster on my own. Besides, I didn't want to interrupt your conversation with Jaune. I couldn't ruin the chance for you to make a new friend, now could I?" Gabriel asked rhetorically, remembering Yang's words some minutes earlier.

"But still, you could have said _something_. What if we got lost trying to look for you? We'd be late for the orientation!...Wait a second…" Ruby paused, realization finally dawning on her. "The orientation! We gotta hurry and find the building for it or we'll miss it! Gabe, did you find where we needed to go?!" Ruby asked in a worried tone, slightly fearful of messing up anything else on their first day at Beacon.

"Yeah, it's this way." Gabriel said, jabbing a thumb over his' shoulder. "It'll only take a minute to get there walking from here. We still have time you know, so we can just take our time getting there." Gabriel said, trying to ease Ruby's worries.

"Oh, that's good! That's one less thing we have to worry about! Anyway, I'm just glad you're alright." She said, giving him a big grin before she pouted at him. "But the next time you do that, you better tell us or you're gonna get it the next time we see you!" Ruby said, shaking a fist at him melodramatically.

Chuckling at what was supposed to be a threatening gesture from the young girl, Gabriel shook his head to himself as his subtle laughter died down. "Alright, gotcha Ruby. I'll keep that in mind." He said, ruffling Ruby's hair, causing her to squirm a bit in place at the contact, more just out of surprise than anything. Once she had shaken herself out from under his grip, Gabriel turned towards the other guy in the group and stuck out a hand for him to shake. "By the way, I don't think we were properly introduced before, the name's Gabriel Van Helsing, and this is Ruby. It's a pleasure to meet you." He said, nodding towards said girl as he mentioned her.

Noticing the extended appendage, Jaune gripped the other man's hand and firmly shook it, giving a nod in return. "Glad to meet ya. It's nice to meet new people, but like my mom always says, 'Strangers are just friends you haven't met yet'." He finished.

"True enough. Now, let's get back to it shall we?" Gabriel asked, referring to the orientation.

"Ah, yes. Lead the way." Jaune said, gesturing for the other boy to take the lead.

Nodding at the gesture, Gabriel turned in the direction of the building and started to walk towards one of the wider, shorter buildings of the campus, the other two falling in beside him.

A few moments passed before Ruby started up a conversation once again, this time addressing Gabriel. "Hey, Gabe. I know we've kinda hung out for a while but what kind of weapons do you use? I know you use a sniper rifle since that's the first weapon I saw you with, but I also saw that you had something else you used last night. Can I see what it was?" Ruby asked, bouncing up and down slightly in excitement.

"Hmm, oh yeah, sure." He paused, slinging over his sniper rifle, _Teddy_ , in one hand while collecting the slightly compacted/shortened form of his' weapon, _The Crescent Eclipse_ , in the other, presenting them to Ruby.

"Well the sniper rifle…is just a sniper rifle. It just shoots things and they die, I call it _Teddy_ after a big-name hunter from where I come from. But this," Gabriel said, emphasizing the boned-staff-like weapon before extending it to its full height. ", is what I think you were referring to about last night. This is the one-of-a-kind, _Crescent Eclipse_ …It's also a scythe, kind of like yours, only… older, I guess." And with a flourish, a blade of plasma extended from the slot at the top of the weapon, humming slightly.

Ruby looked at the weapon with stars in her eyes, reaching forward to grab the weapon to inspect it before stopping and retracting her hands again, laughing sheepishly in embarrassment. "Huh, our weapons kind of share the same name almost. Then again, great minds often think alike!" Ruby said cheerily. "The scythe looks all deadly and ancient, but really, really super cool! But, doesn't it get heavy carrying both of those around?" Ruby asked, tilting her head slightly to the side.

Compacting the weapons and sliding them back onto his back, Gabriel responded. "Meh, I can handle it. Besides, I still have a couple more things I wanted to show you really quickly. Check it out." With that, he dug his' hands into the depths of his' coats and pulled out his' dual heavy pistols from their holsters which were on the sides of his' chest.

"I keep these in case numbers become an issue. All the guns I have use armor-piercing ammunition, but in extreme cases I like to add my own little secret mix to each bullet." Gabriel explained.

"No way! You have three guns! That's so awesome! I wish I can carry that many, but I think I'll just stick with my baby. It's perfect just the way it is." Ruby said, pulling out her respective weapon and nuzzling it affectionately.

"Too true." Gabriel grinned. "But, there was one last thing I wanted to show you."

" _Another_ weapon? What do you have this time? Is it a cannon or a machine gun or something?" Ruby asked, her mind buzzing with the various types of weapons he might have yet to show her.

"Well, not quite. But now that you mention it, I do have something else other than what some would consider conventional weaponry. First, I have my Kukri knife. It's a gift from my dad that he gave me before I went on that boating trip I told you about, remember?" Gabriel asked, to which Ruby nodded rapidly and he continued. "The knife is just a knife, it doesn't do anything special. But I like to have a backup, just in case. But anyway, what I wanted to show you was _this_." Gabriel said, pulling something out of the inside pocket on the left side of his' coat.

As he pulled out the curious little device, one of the first things one noticed about it was that the item seemed to be connected to Gabriel's cloak by a thin, metallic chain which seemed to loop into the coat's interior. Taking a closer look at it as he held it in the palm of his' hand for any and all to see, the two present looked at it and saw …a pocket-watch?

"Umm, Gabriel? That's a pocket-watch, you do know that right?" Jaune asked, wondering just where the guy was going with this. Ruby meanwhile appeared to be just as stumped as Jaune, scratching at the side of her head.

"Ah, but it isn't just any normal pocket watch. It took me a _long_ time to figure it out and rearrange it to do what I needed it to. You see, it has the ability to… stop time." Gabriel said, pausing for dramatic effect.

"What, like keep the little hands on it from moving? Can't you do that with any type of watch or clock?" Jaune asked skeptically.

"No Jaune, you're misunderstanding me." Gabriel said, sighing. "I didn't mean that it stops recording time on the face of the clock itself - any regular clock can do that - what I'm saying is that the pocket-watch stops the flow of time in the world around it."

"Whoa, you mean like time-travel?" Jaune asked, amazed as he looked closer at the device and noticed the glowing energies flowing through it. Ruby looked from beside Gabriel and examined the device in wonderment as well.

"Sort of. It doesn't allow one to travel back or forward in time. It just allows you to go through reality in one frame of time, so you can be anywhere at any given moment in time, if you can get to that place that is." Gabriel clarified.

"Dude, that's incredible! Where did you find this?" Jaune asked.

"I got it from … an old man I knew. He died a while back, but he made this before he passed away. Though I had to study it and learn how to remake and use it since it was really unstable back then. But it's all good now though and it won't run out of power for a long, long time."

"Hey, Gabriel?" The quiet voice of Ruby asked, continuing to look down at the device in his hand.

"Yeah, Ruby?" Gabriel asked, raising an eyebrow.

"Is this how you escaped from me the first time we met a? Even when I used my semblance, I still wasn't fast enough to catch up to you, and I'm faster than anyone I know. Well, maybe except my uncle Qrow that is." Ruby asked.

"Yeah, it is. It's a bit cheap I'll admit, but it helps me get the job done when I need. And it'll help me do what I need to do to save lives in the future." Gabriel elaborated.

"Oh, okay. Well I guess that's one mystery solved then." Ruby said, finally getting a bit of clarity over an old issue that had lingered in the back of her mind.

"Anyway, heads up you guys. The building's up ahead, so let's see what all this stress is about." At the statement's end, Gabriel sped up his pace slightly to reach the building quickly, intent on not being late for this important event.

"Hey, wait up!"

"Hold up you guys!"

Both Ruby and Jaune exclaimed, the both of them jogging to catch up to the third member of their groupsas he went on ahead.

And so, as they entered the building, so too did they enter into each other's lives. Though, for better or for worse, only time could tell.

* * *

 **A/N: Well, that's it for this chapter you guys. I hope you enjoyed the read and I look forward to what comes next. Though, please do try to be merciful in your reviews, I'm delicate.** ;_; **Anyway, until next time, this is The Brutal Legend, signing off.**


	4. Slumber

**Disclaimer: I do not and will not own the rights to RWBY or its characters. I am just a simple writer/author just trying to have a little fun with Monty Oum's/Rooster Teeth's story.**

* * *

"The world is filled with a lot of evil, and it will try to make us suffer as it tries to end us and all that we have ever worked towards and cared about. But it doesn't have to be like that. We can become strong enough to protect all that we hold dear, and someday, we can make our own happy endings." –G.V.H.

* * *

Walking down a path leading to a narrow yet tall entrance, three people ventured into the open space outside of what could only be described as a cathedral. The area around it was occupied with numerous individuals as they all stood, waiting for the upcoming event which would mark the beginning of their careers as huntsmen and huntresses, respectively.

Passing through into the open area, the three figures slowed down to search for a place to stand and wait for the ceremony to start, that was until a voice broke through the ambient chatter of the area, directed solely at them.

"Ruby, over here! I saved you a spot!" Yang said, waving her hand enthusiastically at her sister to get her attention.

"Oh! Hey, I gotta go! I'll see you after the ceremony!" Ruby said hurriedly to Jaune before jogging towards Yang to get to her spot before the event had even started.

"Oh hey, wait!" Jaune said, watching as Ruby disappeared into the formless shape of the crowd ahead of him. As he realized he was now once again left alone, he sighed, looking down and kicking up some dust with his' feet as the slightest bit of loneliness began to creep up on him. "Ahh, great. Now where am I supposed to find a nice, quirky girl to talk to?" Jaune said as he threw his' hands up into the air in exasperation and walking off, all the while missing the gaze of a certain red-headed Amazonian who may have overhead the remark.

"Well Jaune, I may not be a quirky little girl, but we can still talk you know?" Someone said as they caught up to Jaune and matched his' pace.

As he began to walk through the crowd, Jaune looked over to see who it was that had spoken to him only to realize that it was other newly-made friend, Gabriel, quickly made to respond to his friend's statement, the warm feeling of camaraderie making itself known only to him as he realized he still had someone else he could still chat with. "Yeah, I guess we can... Wait, sorry! I didn't mean to say that like I didn't want to talk to you or anything! It's just—" Jaune went on, rambling and waving his' arms frantically in front of him while he tried to find some way to rectify the statement.

"Hey, don't worry about it, man. I know what you meant. You just prefer red-heads, huh?" Gabriel interrupted, an amused grin making its way onto his' face as he went to egg on his' friend.

"What? No! Ruby was just really fun to talk to and I don't really know a lot of people here, so… yeah." Jaune trailed off, taking the moment to scratch his' cheek in embarrassment, feeling all the more awkward in the moment as he tried, and failed, to explain himself.

"True, Ruby is a pretty fun girl once you get to know her. But still, since I'm here why don't we try to get to know each other a little more, considering that we're probably going to be sharing the same training and classes and all?" Gabriel questioned, raising an eyebrow imploringly as he awaited Jaune's answer. While the question was initially asked just for the sake of simmering down the mood between the two for the moment, Gabriel couldn't help but admit to himself that he was just the slightest bit curious to know a bit more about Jaune and what exactly someone like him would be doing in a place like this in the first place.

"Yeah, sure." Jaune paused, sighing. "So, what'd you want to know?" He asked neutrally, straightening out after once again regaining his' composure.

"Well, first off, why don't we both say why we wanted to become Huntsmen? I'll go first." Gabriel said, pausing as he cleared his' throat. "I want to become a huntsman so I can help people, to make sure they can live the lives that they were meant to and find whatever it is fate has in store for them, no matter how insignificant. And, perhaps then, if we can all work together, we can all work to make the world a better place, for all of us." Pausing for a few moments to let the idea of the statement settle in, Gabriel once again resumed in asking his' question to Jaune, "How about you, Jaune? Why did you want to become a Huntsman?" Gabriel asked, looking at said man inquisitively while he awaited his' response. Curiosity being quite evident across the man's features, as far as anyone was able to see, anyway.

"Me? Well, uh, to be honest, I just want to live up to my family name. You see, my family's legacy goes back a long ways, and they're really famous for being made up of great heroes and warriors all throughout history. Now that I'm old enough, I want to try to be like them and become strong enough to make a name for myself like they did. Maybe even save a cute damsel in distress or two along the way and even inspire a few kids to become heroes, just like me!" Jaune finished up confidently, striking a macho pose for emphasis, and for a moment even Gabriel felt noticeable amount of conviction behind the young man's words. Then, after getting a few stray glances from the people around him, Jaune relaxed his' pose and chuckled sheepishly once he realized the attention his' brief display had attracted before rushing off with a haste in his' step as he once again speed-walked through the crowd, making a deliberate effort not to make eye contact with anyone, lest he catch someone making fun of his' previous actions. However, Gabriel soon saw his' friend's sudden movement and before long he too took off, matching the boy's pace and soon enough caught up to him. And, in this moment of quiet awkwardness which settled between them, Gabriel spoke up.

"Yeah, I can see that from you. Who knows, maybe you'll be the greatest hero your family or anyone's ever seen. The thing about the future is that: Anything is possible, really. All you need to do is understand it and make it a reality." Gabriel added, giving Jaune a gentle smile, though unfortunately, Jaune wouldn't be able to see it from under his' cowl; though, hopefully, he wouldn't have to.

"Wha-, you really think so?" Jaune asked hopefully, pausing in his' stroll as he looked at the guy next to him, wondering if he really did mean what he had just said, considering it was _him_ , the oh-so-wimpy Jaune Arc of all people. Yeah, he was probably just trying to inflate his' ego or something. Yeah, that had to be it…

"Of course." Gabriel answered, nodding towards Jaune. "You just have to try your best and you'll always make progress to where you want to go. And for what it's worth, _I_ believe you can do it."

Shocked at the tone of certainty his' friend said the statement with, Jaune couldn't help but feel the slightest bit moved by his' friend's endearing words. "Oh, well, thanks man. You know, nobody's really said that to me. Well, except my mom, but I don't really think she counts since she'd probably say that for anything I wanted to do. But, thanks for the vote of confidence though, it means alot." Jaune said, nodding in acknowledgement, a warm feeling at finally being acknowledged, despite all the years of neglect and scrutiny he had faced with his' peers that chose to mock him for his' glaring misgivings rather than getting to know the real him and who he really tried to be, making its way through him. Perhaps then, he realized, he may have found a true friend in someone after all.

"No problem, Jaune." Gabriel responded, giving a quick nod to his' friend, one which Jaune happily returned.

However, any further conversation between the two was put on hold as both boys overheard a nearby conversation as a certain white-clad girl spoke up, referring to the both of them in passing.

"…and talk about cute boys like tall, blonde and scraggly over there next to big, stoic and mysterious." Weiss said, faux-enthusiasm laced all-throughout her tone as she said it. The statement was quickly followed by the two boys' confused grunts of, "Hmm?", both of them comically tilting their heads in question at being referenced off-handedly by someone they hadn't a clue about.

Then, as the conversation between the two girls tapered off with a resoundingly stern, "No." from Weiss as she responded to one of the questions asked by the other converser, Ruby, the sound of a microphone being activated and adjusted over a PM system went out, causing all the students to stop their conversations and turn their attention towards the stage with bated anticipation.

Clearing his' throat quietly, Headmaster Ozpin of Beacon Academy, who had just walked out to stand upon the stage, began to give his' speech to those in attendance-namely, the students.

"I'll…keep this brief." He said coolly, almost seeming disinterested in his' current role as speaker, or perhaps it was the speech itself that had his' mood tapered off at the moment; perhaps there were other, background concerns that nobody was privy to that had him in such an impartial demeanor. Though whatever the explanation, the neutrality behind the man's tone was plain for all to see, though only those who had come to know and speak to the esteemed man would have known better.

But, for now, he continued. "You have traveled here today in search of knowledge. To hone your craft and acquire new skills. And when you have finished, you plan to dedicate your life to the protection of the people. But I look amongst you, and all I see is wasted energy." He continued, drawing several confused glances from the crowd at his' statement, some perhaps even being offended by the man's terse words towards them. Though if the man saw any of this unsettlement begin to simmer, he didn't let on to his' knowledge as he unwaveringly continued on with his' speech. "In need of purpose, direction. You assume knowledge will free you of this. But your time at this school will prove that knowledge can only carry you so far. It is up to you, to take the first step." And with that he walked off the stage and left, his' speech and its point concluded, leaving many of the students in varying states of thought and perplexion, some more than others.

A moment later, his' assistant Ms. Glynda Goodwitch took reign of the microphone and informed those in attendance: "You will gather at the ballroom tonight, tomorrow your initiation begins. Be ready, you are dismissed." And with that said, the ceremony was concluded and everybody startled to file out, chatting animatedly with each other as they discussed whatever they chose to take from the speech, the academy and its appearance and structure or just life in general.

Gabriel watched as Jaune snuck up behind the girls, with Yang discussing Ozpin's demeanor during the speech with Ruby, before Jaune broke in on the conversation with: "I'm a natural blonde you know." The comment causing both sisters to look at said blonde-haired boy curiously while the Schnee heiress simply face-palmed at the comment.

Walking up beside Jaune and laying a hand on his shoulder, the action causing said guy to look at him, Gabriel looked at him impassively and said, "You're trying too hard, man." He paused, raising his' hand off the guy's shoulder as he soon realized something else at the moment. "Anyway, I think I'm going to get going before it gets late and all the good spots at the ballroom are taken. I'll see you guys around, later." Gabriel said quickly before turning away from Jaune and the group and quickly exiting the area, remembering that since this would be a shared dormitory for the night, it'd be a good idea to get there while everyone else busied themselves exploring so that he could find a more favorable place to bunk at.

"Wait, what did you mean, 'I'm trying too hard?'… Hey, wait up!" Jaune said worriedly before he, after a few terse moments of silence by his' departing friend, went after his newly made friend to try to get an answer out of him, jogging to catch up to the only other boy in his' class that he knew as they both exited the area through the same gateway they came in from.

"Wait for me! I don't even know where we're supposed to go!" Ruby yelled out to try to get their attention as she raced off with them as well, unsure of where exactly she was supposed to go anyway without their help, fully forgetting that Yang herself was already familiar with at least a bit of the campus' layout.

"Hey, do you even know where you're going?!" Yang yelled incredulously at them before sighing and following after them after a few moments, not getting even a glance from any of them as they all left. "Well, when in Vale…" She trailed off as she went and followed after her sister, nearly running as she tried to catch up to the departing trio. Besides, she could meet up with her friends again later and finding a good spot to bunk at sounded like a good idea too.

"…I'm surrounded by simpletons." Weiss said tiredly back in her spot near the auditorium, and after a few moments of standing in the same place awkwardly alone, she too walked out and left the area as well, though at a much more sedate pace than the others.

* * *

 **(Nighttime, Location-Ballroom)**

It was late and the students attending the Academy of Beacon situated themselves as they prepared to get a good night's rest for the upcoming initiation. Though, considering the age group and unsupervised conduct between them, the serenity of the night would surely not last.

Looking over to a particular section of the room, one could see a girl with black and red hair wearing black sleepwear writing a letter before soon being interrupted by the dull thud of someone landing in a sleeping bag beside them, that person in particular being Yang who had begun to speak to the aforementioned individual, revealed to be her dear sister, Ruby.

Then, taking a gander over towards the center of the room, a boy in blue wandered through the area before pausing and turning as he noticed he caught the attention of one of said girls as she admired the posing boys near him before she turned away with a visibly horrified grimace at the mere sight of him in his' horrendous, blue one-piece (not to be confused with the anime production of the same name) pajamas.

From his' spot, Gabriel chuckled at the encounter before he turned his' attention back to the acoustic guitar in his' hands, ignoring the ambient chatter and experiences going on around him as he tuned his' guitar, plucking the strings again and again to test the tone and pitch of each one until they were juuust right. Finally, after a couple of minutes of tightening and loosening the strings, he strummed his' guitar once, listening back on the reverberating tone which would indicate whether his' efforts had finally been successful or if he still had more adjustments to make to the string's tension. Luckily for him, the sound that reached back to his' ears was one of approval, at least from him, and thus he went ahead and strummed back and forth along the set of strings calmly, playing nothing in particular as he closed his' eyes and let the atmosphere of the world, or room in this case, around him drive the tempo and rhythm of the melody. And, for what seemed like hours, all was calm and happy within his' mind's eye.

"Whoa, you can play the guitar? That's sooooo cool!" A boisterous voice stated from nearby, breaking him from his' musing trance.

Opening his' eyes to look at the speaker, Gabriel opened his' vision only to come upon a peculiar figure, one who chose to kneel beside him to his' right. Taking in their appearance, the first thing Gabriel noticed about the visitor was that the person was in fact a girl, one with wild orange hair that went down to the nape of her neck. He also noticed that she was dressed in a rather cute outfit, consisting of a pink skirt that went down to about to her mid-thigh, a white cotton shirt/black jacket combo which also seemed to have a design shaped like a heart cut out from the chest of her shirt. Thankfully, it didn't seem to show much off more than just a little bit more skin.

Once his' cursory glance of her appearance was done, he also took notice of the great, big grin that she wore on her face before it suddenly opened as she began speaking.

"I'm Nora, nice to meet ya! Hey, can you play me a song while you're at it? That would just absolutely make my day! Or night, technically, but whatever!" The girl now known as Nora exclaimed cheerily, giggling slightly once she finished introducing herself.

"Nora, what are you doing over here? I turn around for one minute and you end up on the other side of the room. Are you bothering this man?" A man in a dark-green/black Asian-styled outfit said, walking up to the boisterous red-head. His' calm demeanor betraying the slightest bit of annoyance he was more than likely feeling towards his' associate at the moment.

"What? Nooooo, I would never! I just wanted to know if he'd play me a song, since he has a guitar and all!" She said blithely, looking up at the new arrival with her ever-present grin.

"Nora, you really shouldn't be asking for things from people you just met." The refined boy said before he turned his' attention to Gabriel. "Sorry about Nora, she's a little... brash. I hope she didn't cause you too much trouble."

"Hey, I resent that!" Nora said indignantly but was seemingly ignored by both of the other guys, causing her to pout indignantly at the both of them in annoyance.

"Nah, she's fine. I wasn't doing anything anyway, so no harm done. By the way, name's Gabriel. Gabriel Van Helsing." He said, setting aside the guitar and reaching a hand out for the other boy to take.

"Ren, Lie Ren." He said bowing his' head to the man slightly and grasping the man's hand firmly as they shook hands. "Well, it was a pleasure meeting you, but I think my friend and I should be retiring for the night." He said before turning to his' childhood friend. "Come along Nora, it's getting late and I don't want to take up any more of this man's time."

"Aww, do I have to?" Nora whined, looking to her long-time friend and receiving an unflinching gaze for an answer. "Fiiine, you're no fun! Good night, guitar guy!" She said, waving at said man before turning around and skipping back to her spot where her bed was at, closely followed along by her friend who too gave a short wave in departure before turning his' attention back to his' friend.

"Oooooh, shiny!" Nora said mischievously in the distance as she spotted something seemingly interesting.

"Wha-? Hey, Nora, don't touch that!" Said the faded voice of Ren from half-way across the room as he ran to stop his' friend. A few moments passed before the sound of what could only be described as pure calamity rang out, and for a moment Gabriel could have sworn he heard a cat yelp in the chaos followed by the sound of glass breaking or ceramics shattering.

'Hmm, she seems pretty fun. I guess I can make it up to her and play a song before the night is done.' Gabriel thought off-handedly as he turned back to his guitar and continued to play, trying to relax himself as he played notes and chords arbitrarily, deciding on which of the few songs and pieces he knew by heart to play before he too went to sleep.

Though, as he continued to play, he heard the sound of a couple of peculiar voices not too far away from him that caught his' ear and turned his' attention to the direction the voices were coming from. Looking over, he saw both Ruby and Yang conversing with another girl, this one dressed in black sleepwear as she read a book by candlelight, seemingly ignoring them at the moment as they tried to get to know her. And, as he looked on at the mysterious literate, he had the feeling he'd seen her somewhere before, before realizing that it was the same girl who he had met earlier that day with Ruby who introduced the identity and legacy of Weiss Schnee and her family, after his' heated discussion with said heiress.

Interested to see where the encounter would go, Gabriel stood up and headed over to the three conversing girls, slinging the guitar over his' back by its sling. Once he was within hearing distance, Gabriel could start making out the discussion the three were having with each other.

"…What's it about?" Ruby asked, referring to the book held within the girl in black's grasp.

"Huh?" The girl responded questioningly, turning her attention fully towards Ruby for the first time since the conversation started as it shifted over to her preferred topic of interest.

"Your book. Does it have a name?" Ruby asked unflinchingly.

"Well, it's about a man with two souls. Each fighting for control over his' body." The girl informed them simply, glancing up at them bashfully.

"Ahh, the story of The Noblewoman and the Fiend. It's a good story if I say so myself, but I can do without the cursive font in the book though." Gabriel said off-handedly as he made his' presence known to the group.

"Oh, hi Gabriel!" Ruby said over her shoulder before turning around to meet the familiar individual and nearly jumping in surprise. "Wait, that is you, isn't it?" She said, looking the man up and down as she scrutinized the appearance of the guy before her in comparison due to his' drastic change in wardrobe from the armored appearance she come to identify him by over the last couple of days and his' now-current sleepwear.

"Yeah, why? Were you expecting someone else?" Gabriel asked curiously, looking down at the red and black girl from his' still-generous height, aside from the advantage his' armored boots usually provided.

"No, I just haven't seen you out of your outfit before. Wow, you look different from what I imagined. I thought you'd look all mean and serious and stuff, but you look pretty cool to me." Ruby asked as she looked at him curiously, almost uncomfortably so.

"Uhh, thanks. I guess?" He said uncomfortably, shifting from side to side anxiously.

"Hmm, not too bulky and not too scrawny, with a nice skin-tan to boot. Me likey." Yang said off to the side, giving a small whistle of appreciation as her eyes roved over the attractive, if otherwise slightly-above-average, physique of the guy before her. From his' shining dark-brunette hair to his' toned physique to his' above-average, if just the slightest bit wide, build and finished off with calmest, most serene eyes with the most relaxing shade of brown she had ever seen, not quite dark enough to be unsettling yet not light enough to otherwise be unremarkable; a just-right tone if you will. All of these features more or less being contained by a simple, black T-Shirt which read 'Stand Back! I Feel a song coming on.', a statement which made her chuckle mentally as she read it, and a pair of black pajama pants which were decorated with numerous patterns of icy, white scenery along with a polar bear on the foreground of each pattern. Each of the man's features alone were quite attractive in their own right, and while he certainly wasn't at the level of being stunning or overwhelmingly alluring, overall Yang had to admit he was quite the model specimen of the male species, to say the least.

"Can we all just stop talking about me already and continue our discussion on good books?" Gabriel said defensively, crossing his' arms over his' chest as he gave the both of the examining girls stern looks.

"I couldn't agree more. By the way, I'm Blake. Blake Belladonna." The now-identified Blake said simply, giving him a nod in greeting as she was more than willing to change the now-awkward atmosphere that was beginning to develop around them into a more comfortable one, especially since there was now another book-lover around to talk with.

"Nice to meet you. It's obvious that you love to read, how about you two?" Gabriel said, glad for the change in topic as he looked over towards Yang and Ruby questioningly.

"I love books actually. Yang used to read to me every night before bed. Stories of heroes and monsters. They're one of the reasons I wanted to be a Huntress." Ruby confessed, remembering a much more innocent time in her life before it all became about fighting, weapons and training.

"And why is that? Hoping you'll live happily ever after?" Blake asked with an undertone of veiled-skepticism in her tone, giving the Ruby-locked girl a curious look.

"Well I'm hoping we all will. As a girl, I wanted to be just like those heroes in the books. Someone who fought for what was right and protected people who couldn't protect themselves." Ruby declared.

"That's very ambitious for a child." Blake said, genuinely admiring the idea stated by Ruby. "Unfortunately, the real world isn't the same as a fairy tale." She countered, almost somewhat glum in having to say it to such an innocent soul.

"Well, that's why we're here. To make it better." Ruby responded simply before her sister started to encroach upon her.

"Ooooh, I'm so proud of my baby sister!" Yang gushed, making small sounds of affection one would make to a child or baby as she hoisted her little sister in her arms.

Unamused by the affectionate contact with her sister, Ruby struggled to break out of the embrace. "Gah! Cut it out!" She yelled out before smacking her sister and getting in a comically frenzied brawl with her, fists and feet flying haphazardly as they 'fought', kicking up dust and debris within their wake.

Undaunted by the conflict happening before her, the girl in black continued the discussion and said, "Well, Ruby, Yang. It's a pleasure to—" Though whatever else was going to be said was interrupted by the sudden arrival of another girl, one which those in attendance were already familiar with.

"What in the world is going on over here?!" Weiss said heatedly as she walked towards the fighting duo. "Don't you realize some of us are trying to sleep?!" She said before pausing in realization at the company before her.

"Oh not you again!" Both Yang and Weiss said simultaneously, Yang having ended her small bout of fighting with Ruby once she sensed the other girl's presence, the both of them tensing at the mere presence of the other.

"Shh! Guys, she's right. People are trying to sleep!" Ruby said no worse for wear, trying to reason with the both of them while she discreetly looked around to some of the prone figures in their bags scattered throughout the room. Though, soon enough, the conversation between the three continued to devolve in civility, none of the voices between any of the arguing girls quieting down in the least.

Realizing that she would get no more reading done tonight in _this_ atmosphere, Blake turned around and gathered the candelabra behind her which she had previously been using to read and blew out its candles with a single breath, sending the immediate area into darkness. Though, the room was still partly illuminated by various other light sources, ranging from chandeliers and other night-stands as well as moonlight as it streamed in through some of the windows of the room, and soon enough those too began to blink out as moments passed and everybody else was getting to ready to retire for the night.

"Now, now. That's enough, all of you." Gabriel said, pushing away and getting between the sisters and Weiss as he made to stop their quarreling. "It's already getting late and I think we should all call it a night. We have a big event tomorrow and it isn't going to do anybody any good if we're all tired from arguing all night! Now let's just agree to disagree and go our separate ways, alright?" Gabriel said firmly, trying to settle things for tonight between the two arguing groups.

"But they-, she-…Hmph!" And with that, Weiss Schnee turned around and headed to her spot in the corner of the room which held a raised mattress, most likely brought in by her esteemed servants, deciding not to deign the three with a response.

"Thanks, Gabe. I was trying to get her to calm down before things go too loud but she wouldn't listen! I'm glad nobody yelled at us for being too loud or anything, so thanks for coming around when you did." Ruby said, nodding in thanks to her friend.

"Yeah, that chick was a real piece of work, but I'm glad she was at least willing to listen to you, but maybe that was just because she didn't recognize you without your armor on?" Yang added thoughtfully, shrugging to herself as she brought her arms to rest across her chest as she looked back at him appreciatively.

"Perhaps, maybe if she did know it was me, things wouldn't have been so calm. ***Yawn*** But, yeah. I think I'm gonna go catch some z's already. I'll see you ladies tomorrow morning, goodnight everyone." Gabriel said, giving them a nod as he began walking to his' sleeping bag, leaving both sisters to themselves.

Covering her mouth as she too yawned, Yang looked over to Ruby. "I think he has the right idea. I'm gonna hit the sac too. Night, Ruby." Yang said, heading towards her bag with a departing wave over her shoulder as she left. Blake, meanwhile, chose the opportunity in the post-cataclysmic silence that ensued to get comfortable in her own nearby bag as she too turned in for the night as well, ready to sleep off the mentally-exhausting experiences all throughout the day. Though, despite the darkness which pervaded all throughout the room, she still continued to read her book as she laid down, her eyes adjusting to the low-level natural light given off by the moon through the large windows in the room.

"Alright, night Yang." Ruby said quietly before tip-toeing around the prone figures sleeping around her bag and settling in it, but not before quickly returning to her letter, intent on finishing the rest of it before long.

As Gabriel reached his' bag, he sat down and slung his' guitar to his' front, deciding to use a little enchanted music to lull these people into the land of dreams; since being as late as it was and anybody who wasn't asleep by now was most likely probably having trouble sleeping anyway. And so, soon enough, he began to softly strum and pluck on the strings of his' guitar, deciding to play the opening segment of the legendary song, 'Stairway to Heaven', acoustic style.

As he played the angelic, soothing tones of his' guitar's enchanted song, more and more people fell into a lull and soon they all began to succumb to the comfortable embrace of oblivion; even those overwhelmed by the pressures that awaited them in the upcoming day and the days following, depending on their results in the initiation, soon calmed down enough to where even those who had troubled minds could at least fall into a dreamless sleep.

Soon, the intro of the song ended and so too did the melody itself and the only people left awake were: Ruby, who rushed to finish the letter as she too started to feel the soothing effects the melody left on her before she too quickly fell into the sweet embrace of unconsciousness, her hand still poised as she finished signing her name on the letter-and Jaune, who had left before the song started to use the restroom and returned to the large room mid-tune only to collapse into his' sleeping bag once he reached it, the soothing effect the background melody created finally affecting him as well and easing him into the realm of sleep.

Somewhere else in the room, a certain orange-haired girl twitched and kicked her life-long friend through her sleeping bag in her sleep. The action only causing the latter to grumble lowly within his' own mat and bag in discomfort before turning over on his' side, taking the impact in stride as he continued to sleep in blissful ignorance.

Plucking the last few notes of the procession, Gabriel opened his' eyes and took note of the sounds of steady breathing and snoring around himself before suddenly yawning, now figuring it was his' turn to join these people in the realm of the sandman. And soon enough, he too was tucked into his' bag and let himself relax, letting the quiet atmosphere of the room and all its inhabitants soothe him to rest. Moments later, his' eyelids drooped before closing altogether, and then he was out like a light.

Though, unlike those who slept peacefully all around him, his' dreams would be filled not with the nonsensical images and sounds of the past that most people saw, but the echoing whispers and darkened shadows of the future.

* * *

 **A/N: Well, that's another chapter. Though I will be the first to say the ending segments were a bit weak, but, I gave it a shot. Still, I had fun writing it, so let me know what you think of it. Though, I do hope you enjoyed it. So, until next time. This is The Brutal Legend, signing off and logging out.**


	5. Precipice

**Disclaimer: I do not and** _ **will**_ **not own the rights to RWBY. That honor goes to Monty Oum for its conception and Rooster Teeth for its sustainment.**

* * *

"Throughout my life, I have accomplished feats that would have others label me a king or even a god. But I refute such titles; I am and will only ever be _human_. Nothing more, nothing less." –G.V.H.

* * *

It was approximately mid-morning at Beacon Academy and many of the students and staff were already awake and about, doing whatever it was they needed to do to start off this day. While the staff was preparing their curriculum for the students that they would soon be teaching, the students themselves were either getting ready for the day with breakfast, stretching and warm-up exercises, gathering their equipment, or some weird combination of the three. But, in this particular instance, someone had already done the former two and was now fulfilling the third.

Pressing the number sequence to open his' locker, the locker beeped before opening and revealing its contents to its owner which consisted of: a set of several firearms, a large melee weapon, a small melee weapon and a set of armor atop a folded stack of clothing. Seeing that his' equipment was safe and sound, Gabriel gathered the armor and went about placing it on, starting with the armor itself before he placed the large cloak on his' shoulders, strapping it on the armor through a couple of lace bindings on each shoulder and one on the back of his' neck to keep it in place. Though while he did pay attention to the task of setting up his' armor, he couldn't help but think back on the dream he had the night before, each segment he could recall having its own profound depth and meaning for what it would hold for his' future and the future of those around him. However, it was one part in particular that stood out the most…

* * *

 **(Flashback)**

The atmosphere around him was obscured with the warped dreamy haze of his' subconscious, and in it he could recall standing on a ruined structure, one he felt he had seen before once upon a time but even now the answer to its identity still eluded him. Through the haze around him, he could feel several presences near him, two of the presences felt familiar while the final one standing across from him exuded a distinctly ominous and hostile aura towards him, but even as he tried to look at each of them, the fog of the world around them masked their identities from him. He remembered his' body moving of its own volition as it turned towards the presence to his' right and gripped the front of the figure as it laid prone on the ground and tossed them to the other familiar presence behind him, to safety it seemed. However, through the silence that permeated the experience, he could distinctly make out the sound of something whizzing through the air, seemingly from the direction of the third, unfamiliar figure. He turned to the mysterious figure across from him only to be met by two things: a searing pain that exploded in his' chest and a pair of amber eyes as they gazed unerringly at him. The last thing he could remember was the sense of dread he felt as his' body began to fail him and started to collapse, soon being followed by a heart-wrenching scream.

* * *

 **(Resumed, Beacon Academy-Lockers)**

It was then that he had awoken with a start, his' body sweating while his' heart pounded heavily in his' chest. Though soon enough, he calmed down once he realized where he was before starting his' day off with a cold shower to clear his' mind. Though, even now, the memories of the dream still plagued him and he couldn't help but wonder what exactly this meant and how this would all come to pass and how much his' particular knowledge of future events would help him or end up leading him to his' doom.

'It looks like only time will tell I suppose…' Gabriel thought forlornly as he looked at the ground before him. For all that he knew and could do, in a world like this, death could find a way to claim even him if he wasn't careful, and he would have to take extra care to avoid succumbing to such a fate if he wanted to complete his' task of saving the world, no matter how long it would take.

Gabriel was shaken out of his' reverie as he heard the ambient sounds of conversation nearby as it echoed through the quiet atmosphere of the hall. As the conversation went on, Gabriel could make out a high-pitched voice, one which he faintly recognized from the day before, as it rambled on about a particular idea they had in mind for the day, or more specifically, the initiation.

"I know! We'll have some sort of signal!" The voice said excitedly. "Like a distress signal. A secret signal, so we can find each other in the forest. Can you imitate a sloth?"

"Nora?" A calmer voice said, getting the other person's, now identified as Nora, attention and causing them to quiet down.

"Yes, Ren?" She asked questioningly.

"I don't think sloths make a lot of noise." The now identified Ren interjected, compacting his' dual weapons, allowing them to slide down the sleeves of his' green, Chinese-styled outfit with ease.

Pausing to reflect on his' answer, she looked around briefly in thought before looking back at him and responding in an excited tone, "That's why it's perfect! No one will suspect we're working together!" She said, grinning mischievously.

"Come on, Nora. Let's go." Ren said stoically, closing his' locker and making his' way to exit the hall they were in. All the while, Nora continued to make idle, playful comments as she followed along, occasionally giggling in excitement.

Looking on at the departing duo as he continued to fit on his' armor, Gabriel could only think: 'Hmm, those two make an interesting pair. You know, I wonder how she hasn't driven him insane by now… Must be some Zen tranquility technique or something, or maybe he just likes her… Meh.' He thought casually, finally finishing equipping his' armor as he laced on his' armored boots. Standing up, Gabriel made his' way down the hall where he would exit out from the campus towards the location where the initiation would be held. Or that was until he heard and saw some familiar individuals slightly further down the hall.

Seeing that they were in the middle of a conversation, he once again decided to sit things out and see how things went. Taking a seat on a nearby bench, he idly pulled out his' knife and began to sharpen it with a small whetstone he bought from the 'From Dust till Dawn' shop as he listened in on the banter between the two sisters.

"Well, remember Ruby, you're not the only one going through initiation. If you wanna grow up, you're gonna have to meet new people and learn how to work together." Yang explained, hoping that her sister would get the point of trying to rely on more than just her. (Read: Yang.)

"Uhh, you sound like Dad!" Ruby said distastefully, tucking away her precious weapon in her locker as she turned back towards her sister. "First of all, what does meeting people have to do with fighting? Secondly, I don't need people to help me grow up. I drink milk!" She said simply, giving off a stoic yet cute pose as she felt she proved her point to Yang.

'Aww, that's adorable… Eww that sounded creepy. Welp, I'm glad I didn't say _that_ out loud at least.' Gabriel mused before stopping that thought process as the conversation continued.

"But, what about when we form teams?" Yang asked imploringly.

"I don't know. I'll be on your team or something." Ruby said unsurely, looking away from Yang.

"Maybe you should be on someone else's team." Yang said nervously, grabbing her long mane of hair and stroking it; perhaps finding some measure in doing so as she broke the rough news to Ruby about depending on more than just her.

'Wow, didn't think Yang of all people would get this nervous around anyone. Well, just goes to show that family can make you feel just about anything I suppose. Hmm, now that I'm thinking about it, I wonder if this is how she would act if she were really crushing on someone…naaahhh!…' Gabriel thought idly, tucking away his' knife into his' holster and leaning his' elbow on his' knee as he sat forward, looking away from the girls as to not attract any attention to himself.

"My dear sister Yang. Are you implying that you don't want to be on the same team as me?" Ruby asked heatedly, jabbing a finger at her sister as she questioned her motives.

"No, of course I do. I just thought… I don't know. Maybe it would help you break out of your shell." Yang explained, trying to persuade her sister to see things her way.

"What the?! I don't need to break out of my shell! That's absolutely—"

"Ridiculous!" Jaune interrupted, cutting Ruby's angry retort short as he obliviously walked between the two sisters. Looking at him, one could see that he was holding a schedule or instruction sheet of some sort.

"There's no way I put my gear in locker _636_ yesterday. I would've remembered counting up that high. Aww, why does this have to happen today?" Jaune groaned pathetically, passing by another duo of girls nearby as he made his' way to his' locker.

"Hey Jaune, isn't that your locker over there?" Gabriel said from beside Jaune as he caught up to him, pointing to the right a few lockers down.

Jumping in surprise, Jaune turned to the direction of the voice and sighed greatly once he noticed who it was before fixing him with a calm gaze. "Oh, hey Gabriel." Jaune said. "So, where'd you say it was again?" Jaune said, looking around sporadically before he caught sight of his' friends pointed finger and looked behind him, conveniently at a locker labeled #636. "Oh, well there you go. Umm, thanks for that, Gabriel. I swear, how many lockers does this place have? Honestly?!" Jaune said exasperatedly, throwing his' hands up, which incidentally launched the paper he had previously been holding into the air. Noticing his' blunder, Jaune quickly tried to catch the paper as it continued to drift lazily to the ground, only for the paper to keep eluding his' grasp at every attempt he made before it ultimately ended up reaching the ground anyway. Groaning at his' failed attempt at such a simple feat, Jaune hunched over and quickly gathered his' before dusting it off.

"Who knows, there may be thousands for all we know, so I guess we should be glad that our lockers were only in the triple digits." Gabriel said casually, idly swinging his' arms back and forth while he teetered on the balls of his' feet/boots.

"Yeah, I guess you're right. Hey Gabriel, have any idea what the initiation's going to be like?" Jaune commented as he punched in his' code and tried to open his' locker, only for him to have to repeat the process a couple of times after forgetting what the sequence was before looking back at the sheet he had previously been using and punching in the correct code that he had written down earlier in case he forgot. Once the locker was finally open, Jaune went about the process of retrieving his' family heirlooms and placed them on his' waist.

Taking a moment to ponder the question over while he leaned on the nearby wall, Gabriel responded with, "Well, if I've learned anything from game shows and competitions, it's more than likely we'll be trying to retrieve some item or artifact from somewhere. And in order to get it, we're going to have to use every piece of knowledge and skill we have in order to find it." Gabriel explained casually as he crossed his' arms stood up from the wall.

"Oh, well I guess that won't be so bad I guess. I mean, it's better than fighting and killing some giant Grimm or something, right?" Jaune asked hopefully, scratching one of his' arms in steadily building anxiety.

"I don't know. I mean, we might have to do just that in order to get to the end, else it'd probably be too easy. Unless they use an obstacle course or maze or something to keep us busy." Gabriel said, placing a hand on his' chin and stroking it thoughtfully.

"Aww man, I'm not good with obstacle courses either!" Jaune whined. "If it's a maze, I think I could do that at least…maybe." Jaune said, slamming his' locker shut and hanging his' head.

"Well, I guess we'll see when we get there." Gabriel said noncommittally, walking up to Jaune and patting him on the back supportingly.

"Buuut, before that. I gotta head over to these ladies and work a little of the Jaune charisma while I have the chance, you know?" Jaune said, straightening out and perking up suddenly before heading past Gabriel and towards the two chatting girls nearby, one of them being none other than the Ice princess, Weiss Schnee herself.

'Ahh, geez, this isn't going to end well. But he's gotta learn somehow…' Gabriel thought forlornly as he looked on at the departing form of Jaune before following him. Catching up to him, Gabriel could hear the conversation devolve as Jaune tried to suavely introduce himself and it already wasn't looking too good for him.

"Great!" Weiss finished, turning around as a conniving look made its way onto her face, exposing her true motives for only a moment. Then, just as suddenly as her discussion with the top student ended, a certain blonde-haired individual cut in between the two girls.

"You know what else is great? Me, Jaune Arc. Nice to meet you." He said suavely, moving to the side and leaning against a locker as he tried to look cool for the heiress, but considering it was Jaune, it was a little underwhelming.

"You again?" Weiss said irritably, crossing her arms in annoyance once she recognized the boy.

"Nice to meet you, Jaune!" A peculiar red-head said enthusiastically, trying to introduce herself to this seemingly confident boy in front of her.

Ignoring the girl's comment before pushing her aside, Jaune stepped up to Weiss. "Yeah, yeah. So, Weiss? Couldn't help but overhear your fondness of me the other day." He said, flexing his' arms and trying to look impressive.

Bringing a hand up to her face in annoyance, Weiss could only say, "Oh, you've got to be kidding me!", in an irritated tone.

"Don't worry." Jaune said, waving his' arms in front of her as if trying to calm her worries. "No need to be embarrassed. So, been hearing rumors about teams. I was thinking you and me would make a good one. What do you say?" He said, misunderstanding the source of Weiss' discomfort, namely being him.

"Actually," The red-headed girl interjected. "I think the teams are comprised of four students each. So—" Though she was cut off as Jaune spoke up, saying to Weiss briefly, "You don't say.", before turning his' attention back to the red-headed warrior.

Swinging over to the girl, Jaune said, "Well, hot stuff. Play your cards right and maybe you can join up with the winning team." He said, jabbing a thumb to himself for emphasis.

Quickly making her way between the two, Weiss interrupted their discussion and pushed the both of them apart before making an interjection of her own. "Jaune, is it?" She asked, though her tone showed anything but interest towards him. "Do you have any idea who you're talking to?" She said, gesturing to the other girl beside her.

"Not in the slightest, snow angel." He said plainly, leaning forward slightly as he tried to flirt with her.

"This is Pyrrha." Weiss supplied, being followed by a quick yet exuberant, "Hello again!" from the now named Pyrrha, whom waved at him in greeting. "Pyrrha graduated top of her class at Sanctum." Weiss said proudly.

Unmoved by the statement, Jaune continued to look blankly at Weiss. "Never heard of it." He explained, showing his' ignorance of the other girl's background.

Scoffing at his' disregard of the other girl's reputation, Weiss continued, trying to make him see how she saw the girl. "She's won the Mistral regional tournaments four years in a row! A new record." Though as she continued to list the girl's achievements, her voice continued to get more and more heated.

"The what?" Jaune said in a comically deadpan and clueless tone, raising an eyebrow in question.

Pausing for an instance as her irritation built up, she finally couldn't handle it anymore before she stepped to the side of them and angrily explained while furiously waving her hands, "She's on the front of every Pumpkin Pete's Marshmallow flakes box!" By the statement's end, her anger still hadn't quite ebbed away and she continued to stand there irritably, crossing her arms in front of her.

Gasping in surprise as he finally recognized one of the girl's 'achievements', he clasped both of his' hands in front of him and leant back, saying, "That's you!", before pointing a hand towards Pyrrha. "They only do that for star athletes and cartoon characters!"

Smiling at the praise, Pyrrha nodded at the comment. "Yeah, it was pretty cool." She said, before frowning as she continued. "Sadly, the cereal isn't very good for you."

"So, after hearing all of this, do you really think you're in the position to ask _her_ to be on _your_ team?" Weiss said, gesturing her head behind her at Pyrrha.

Looking down sullenly, Jaune kicked at the ground slightly with his' foot. "I guess not. Sorry." He said glumly.

Approaching him and laying a hand on his' shoulder, Pyrrha quickly tried to cheer him up. "Actually, Jaune. I think you'd make a great leader." She said positively as she brought her hand back and held it behind her along with her other.

Gushing at the praise, Jaune dramatically brought his' hands up, looking like a peppy schoolgirl, and said, "D'oh stop it!"

"Seriously, please stop it." Weiss added. "This kind of behavior should not be encouraged!" Her tone being reminiscent of a disapproving mother towards a misbehaving child.

Sliding up to Weiss, Jaune ignored the comment. "Seems like Pyrrha's on-board for team Jaune, spots are filling up quick. Now, I'm not supposed to do this, maybe I could pull some strings, find a place for you, what do you say?" He said haughtily, leaning slightly forward towards Weiss, causing her to lean back from his' close proximity.

"Alright, that's a bit too close! Pyrrha, a little help please?" Weiss said desperately, looking behind Jaune towards the athletic girl hopefully.

"I got him." Gabriel quickly interposed, deciding he had been idle long enough already on the other side of the hall and making his' way to Jaune. Laying a hand on the other boy's shoulder, Gabriel said, "Come on, I think it's time we left. Besides, you don't want to be late for the test, right Jaune?" Though as he said the statement, he was already starting to pull Jaune away from the curious gazes of the two girls and further down the corridor they were in.

"Wait! I had them in the palm of my hands, just give me a minute!" Jaune said desperately as he tried to get out of the grip Gabriel seemed to have on him but found his' friend had an iron-like grip on his' arm.

"Nope." Gabriel said simply as he continued to calmly drag his' friend down the hall.

"Oh hey! Don't be so rough, you're gonna leave a bruise!" Jaune said, his' confident tone waning as it was replaced with his' more usual, apprehensive one.

"Yeah, yeah. Now come on you big baby, let's go before things get any worse." He said before quickly adding aloud to the two girls, "Sorry about my friend here, ladies. He's usually not this proactive when it comes to pretty girls, go figure! Anyway, good luck at the initiation!", before picking up his' pace as he continued to drag Jaune away.

"What do you mean by that?! Gabe!" Jaune said, his' voice fading away as both Gabriel and him traveled down the hall towards the exit.

Meanwhile, an intercom situated within the hall spoke up from a monitor, informing the students of the imminent initiation for the students of the school, causing the rest of those still in the hall to quickly finish gathering their gear before starting to leave.

Looking on at the departing pair of boys, both Weiss and Pyrrha stood in the middle of the hall before Pyrrha decided to speak up. "So, Weiss. Did you know who that other boy was? He seemed nice." Pyrrha asked innocently, turning her head to the side to look at the other girl.

"Him?! That boy is nothing but trouble, just look at his' friend, Jaune!" Weiss said, finishing off the statement with a quiet 'Hmph' and crossing her arms in disdain.

"Oh, Jaune wasn't so bad. Besides, it couldn't hurt to _try_ to speak with him." Pyrrha countered, resting a hand on her hip.

"Fine, but when he does something stupid, don't come crying to me!" Weiss said angrily and huffing before quickly smoothing out the wrinkles in her outfit and marching forward towards the exit.

Looking on at the departing girl, Pyrrha promptly followed her before catching up to the other girl. 'Who knows? Maybe these two will actually be different from everyone else. What do I have to lose in trying to get to know them? Besides, the blonde one _was_ kind of cute.' Pyrrha thought cheerfully, a spring coming to her step at the thought. A few moments later, both girls reached the exit and left the hall, their forms disappearing in the bright, sunny light of the day ahead.

* * *

 **(Later-Cliffside)**

Overlooking a vast expanse of forest, several groups of people stood side-by-side as they waited in their assigned spots, each of the students standing on a single grey tile which contrasted against the green ground around it. Second to the end of the line, Jaune Arc stood on unsteady feet as he waited anxiously on the description for what exactly the test would entail. Beside him, at one end of the row, stood the ever calm form of his' friend Gabriel, who had his' arms crossed while he waited patiently for the test to begin, though his' pose betrayed the inner impatience he held inside as he waited for the initiation to begin, drumming his' fingers across his' arm impatiently. Along the line further down, the row went as follows: Ruby, Yang, Cardin, Ren, Nora, Russel, Pyrrha, Weiss and other individuals, every single person in line in various states of confidence, angst or indifference as they looked ahead.

Meanwhile, two members of the academy of the staff stood before the students, one being the headmaster himself, Ozpin, and the other being Glynda Goodwitch as she stood beside Ozpin in her ever-stoic poise. Taking a moment to look at the gathered students, Ozpin took a slow sip of his' beverage before finally addressing the students.

"For years, you have trained to become warriors. And today, your abilities will be evaluated in The Emerald Forest." Ozpin stated.

Following up on his' statement, Glynda continued. "Now, I'm sure many of you have heard rumors about the assignment of teams. Well, allow us to put an end to your confusion. Each of you will be given teammates, today." She said conclusively, unsettling some of those in the line-up, one of them namely being Ruby.

Continuing where she left off, Ozpin elaborated on the statement. "These teammates will be with you for the rest of your time here at Beacon. So it is in your best interests to be paired with someone with whom you can work well with." Ozpin said, the statement causing Ruby to groan anxiously.

"That being said," Ozpin continued. ", the first person you make eye-contact with after landing will be your partner for the next four years." Ozpin concluded, not looking the least bit apprehensive in his' decision. Meanwhile, appalled by the nature of the partner selection, Ruby made her distress known as she cried out, and perhaps saying what many others were feeling as well with the decision, saying, "What?!" Concurrently, various other students along the line were also discussing with one another as to the nature of this partner selection, some coming up with plans or ideas to signal how they would find one another rather than somebody else, whether it would be an actual signal or leaving behind tracks for the other person to find, amongst other strategies and ideas.

Unbothered by the idle chatter, Ozpin looked at the line and continued with his' speech. "After you've partnered up, make your way to the northern end of the forest. You will meet opposition along the way. Do not hesitate to destroy everything in your path, or you will die." He finished gravely, causing some of the students, like Jaune, to gulp in apprehension at the dire wording.

'Hmm, well that seems a bit severe for a test. But I guess it'd be a good idea to let them be aware of the danger of becoming Hunters, rather than trying to boost their confidence in themselves. Reality versus reassurance, I suppose.' Gabriel thought, stopping his' train of thought before he could get side-tracked and miss the rest of the speech.

"You will be monitored and graded for the duration of your initiation. But our instructors will not intervene. You will find an abandoned temple at the end of the path, containing several relics. Each pair must choose one and return to the top of the cliff. You will guard that item, as well as your standing, and grade you appropriately. Are there any questions?" Ozpin asked, though it was fairly certain that the question was rhetorical.

"Yeah, um, sir." Jaune spoke up, raising his' hand hesitantly.

"Good." Ozpin said, completely ignoring Jaune. "Now, take your positions." And with that, the students each got in their own unique stances, ready to be launched off the cliff and towards their objective in whatever way they could; some of them pulled out their weapons to use while others would use their own particular set of skills and strengths to guide them through the airborne experience.

Though still standing in the same, questioning pose as before, Jaune continued to try and ask his' question to either member of the staff. "Uh, sir? I've got, um, a question." Jaune asked tentatively, still keeping his' hand in the air. Meanwhile, the sound of mechanisms shifting was heard as the stone/metal tiles the students were standing shifted and launched each student, one by one, starting with the side opposite of Jaune Arc and making its way down the line towards him and Gabriel.

"So this landing… strategy, thing. W-What is it? Like dropping us off or something?" Jaune asked curiously.

"No. You will be falling." He said simply, correcting Jaune's assumption of the test.

"Oh. I… see. So, like, did you hand out parachutes for us?" Jaune asked, getting worried as the sound of launch tiles grew nearer and nearer.

Meanwhile, a certain pink-clad Valkyrie squealed in delight as she was launched by her platform, soon followed by her long-time friend, Ren.

Continuing to answer Jaune's questions, Ozpin elaborated on the conditions of the test. "No. You will be using your own landing strategy." He stated, still as calm as ever about the situation others would deem reckless or needlessly dangerous to those involved.

"Uh-huh, yeah…" Jaune responded lamely. Coming to the terrible conclusion everyone else already realized. Meanwhile, the platform sequence finally approached Ms. Xiao Long, who gave a brief wink to her sister before pulling out a pair of pilot shades from…somewhere, and bracing herself just as she was launched into the air, loudly whooping in glee at the sudden rush it brought on. Soon enough, even Ruby herself was launched with naught but the sound of rushing wind to signify her departure.

Feebly continuing off the previous point, Jaune could only ask, "So, uh, what exactly _is_ a landing strategy-hie-hie!" Jaune cried out as he suddenly found himself ungracefully tumbling through the air, without any control as to his' course of flight whatsoever.

Then, the sound of jammed whirring could be heard, causing the sole three figures left at the cliff to look down curiously at the final launch pad before the two members of the staff looked up at the figure standing on it who still continued to look down at his' pad, almost flabbergasted by its inactivity.

"So… spared no expense, eh Ozpin?" Gabriel asked in a deadpan tone, looking back up at Ozpin and stepping off the platform.

"Well, these things do still happen, no matter what you do. But, I'm sure you can find _some_ way to catch up with the rest of your class, Mr. Van Helsing." The headmaster stated as he took a sip from his' mug casually. Meanwhile, Glynda was tapping a few spots on her scroll, requesting an appointment with a technician to come out and check on the device as soon as possible.

" _That_ I can do, sir." Gabriel said, activating his' signature armor and growing several sets of ethereal-light wings.

"Oh, and Gabriel? Don't destroy too much of the forest now. We still need it for further testing periods." Ozpin said, stating it as if it would be more of an inconvenience than anything.

"Alright, but depending on how hard I try, I can't promise anything." Gabriel said coolly. Turning around, he swiftly lifted himself into the air, chasing after the flying forms of the students.

"Is the drone ready, Glynda?" Ozpin asked Glynda, not even turning to look at her as he asked the question, instead choosing to silently look on at the departing forms of the students. Beside him, Glynda pulled out a large scroll and activated its feed, showing a top-down view of the forest as it flew above it. Then, a moment later the feed started to recalibrate itself as it zoomed in on the ground below before finally focusing in on the students-in-flight.

And with that, the test had started.

* * *

 **(Meanwhile, Elsewhere)**

Some miles/kilometers away from the forest, birds, normal birds mind you, flew off haphazardly in every which direction. The trees they had previously been resting on shaking wildly as something started to approach them, the frequency and magnitude of their vibrating increasing as the moments passed.

Then finally, the shaking stopped… but only because that same tree and others like it were ruthlessly uprooted and cast aside, the only use for them now being sustenance for rot-eating organisms and small animals that would use its withering husk for shelter.

The cause for the tree's upheaval continued on, unheeding of the destruction it caused in its wake as it loudly trampled through the area with great haste. The beast itself was quite powerful and blackened, like all Grimm, but unlike others of its kind, this one in particular was greatly revered for its grand intellect and strength.

In a world of heroes and monsters, this creature was truly a titan amongst men. But, amongst monsters, it was truly a giant, a behemoth, a Goliath…

A moment later, a deep roar echoed across the land, scaring away wildlife for miles. Today, this world and its heroes would know fear as they stared right into its lifeless, red eyes.

* * *

 **A/N: Done… what, expecting an Easter egg or something? Get out of here!**

…

…

 **The picture Yang showed Junior in the 'Yellow' trailer was of the Transient Princess… Don't ask me what that means, I don't know who that is either. Look it up. Peace out.**


	6. Overwatch

**Disclaimer: I do not and** _ **will**_ **not own the rights to RWBY, that honor goes to Mounty Oum for conceiving the series and Rooster Teeth for allowing it to continue.**

* * *

"I have always done things on my own. Sometimes, that was a result of preference from either them or me. Other times, it may have just been because only I was able to take on these tasks. But now, I'm glad that there are people with me that I can trust to help me get through life. But, despite all of that, there are still some things that they cannot help me with and I will have to deal with those encounters on my own. Perhaps, that is for the best…"- G.V.H.

* * *

 **(Skies above The Emerald Forest)**

The sky was mostly clear, marred only by the occasional fluffy, white cloud in the distance. In the open expanse of the world's great, blue atmosphere, the sun radiated its brilliant, white-yellow glow along the land below, providing much needed energy and sustenance for photosynthetic life everywhere, namely plants. Along a particular section of land, trees were quite abundant, and within and among those trees, various forms of life cultivated and grew; ever shifting and changing as it adapted to the fluctuating world around it, changes unseen by the naked eye of most creatures and beings. But, for now, all was at peace, relatively speaking.

Moments passed, and the tranquility of the land was shattered, by the whoops, hollers and yells of airborne adolescents; some human, some Faunus, all equally disruptive.

Despite this slight pandemonium, Gabriel was none the wiser to all of this. Instead, he took the moment to enjoy the general serenity of the world around, or rather below, him. Looking down, he observed the tranquility of the Emerald forest as it passed by under him. The trees of the area were fairly identical, with nary a blemish to distinguish one part of the forest from the other. From what he could tell, the trees in the forest were nearly identical in species, height and color, which made him wonder how one could navigate their way through the forest without getting lost. But, he supposed that was where part of the challenge of this test inlaid.

'Hopefully everyone can find their way through. Speaking of, where is every-… Ah, there they are.' Gabriel thought to himself, pausing mid-thought as he looked around and saw the various blurred forms of the rest of his' classmates-in-flight. Observing the group, Gabriel scrutinized each person carefully before he identified each of his' newly found comrades, some more familiar to him than others, each of them in varying poses and stances as they tried to stabilize themselves for either flight or for their inevitable landings. Finally seeing that he was catching up to them, he slowed himself to a much more calm and casual pace, decelerating down to a fraction of his' former speed, causing a considerable amount of wind to flow throughout the area from behind him until it passed him, though it really only shook the leaves and branches of the forest and didn't do much else.

Now that he could examine the area much more thoughtfully, he took notice of the actions of those around him as they descended upon the forest. It was quiet as they soared through the air, almost surreal really as he watched them from above, though the chaos they would soon wreak was signaled in a particularly unexpected way. Catching sight of his' dear friend, Ruby, Gabriel took notice of a particular, lackadaisical black bird as it soared right into the arching path of one Ruby Rose. Looking at her, he saw that due to her inability to freely control her path of flight, her only immediate choice was to have to deal with the bird or risk suffering injury before she even had a chance to start the test, so she did the only thing she could and extended _Crescent Rose_ and used it as a makeshift shield, holding it close and bracing herself as she flew right to and through the avian creature, causing it to cry out innocently once it was hit, its black feathers falling around the point of impact in the air and drifting towards the ground.

"Birdie, No!" Ruby yelled out in distress and perhaps slight guilt at her actions. Though whatever remorse she may have felt soon abated as the ground grew ever closer. Taking action, Ruby aimed, braced and fired several shots from her weapon, using the slight knockback of the combustive shots along with her feather-esque mass to slow her descent enough to where she was able to grip a fairly thick branch of one of the trees she was swinging towards with the curved blade of her scythe, her change in velocity allowing the weapon to curve _around_ the branch, rather than to simply cut through the branch entirely had she been going any faster. Once that was done, she simply unhooked her weapon from the branch and whisked off with a small leap safely onto the forested ground awaiting her, and everyone else, below.

Once he was certain that Ruby had made it down safely enough, he looked around and saw the rest of the group as they all used their own particular 'Landing Strategy(ies)'. For example, Weiss chose to use her glyphs to bounce and skip her way down while Ren himself chose to use the blades of his' signature weapons, _Storm Flower,_ to hook around the trunk of a large tree and circling along it down to the ground below. Then, there was Yang, who used her _Ember Cilica(s)_ to propel herself forward above the canopy of tree tops excitedly before finally descending and bouncing off each of the trees in her path as she dissipated the kinetic energy from her flight. He also took notice of Pyrrha as she quickly braced herself through the upper foliage of the tree-tops of the forest before landing on a branch and observing the area around her, pausing once she caught sight of a particular blonde-haired individual who continued to haphazardly tumble through the air.

Seeing his' imminent peril through her scope, Pyrrha quickly acted and transformed her red and gold(?) rifle, _Milo,_ into one of its other forms, a javelin. Rearing her arm back, she prepared to launch the projectile with one arm while she used the other to judge various variables and formulas of Jaune's rate of descent. Once she had mentally confirmed that her calculations were correct, she swiftly and powerfully launched her Javelin forward, causing the weapon's built-in rocket-propellers to launch it forward with increased power and speed towards its target. A few moments passed, and both Pyrrha and Gabriel waited eagerly from their vantage points for a telltale sign of her success, which was soon rewarded with the sound of the weapon impacting and rebounding back and forth quickly, making a reverberating sound which was soon followed by a distant "Thank you!" from Jaune, to which Pyrrha responded with an apologetic, "I'm sorry!" as she waved towards his' general direction.

Deciding to leave before anyone could make eye-contact with him, and vice-versa, Gabriel fluttered his' wings, launching him swiftly to his' destination in the northern section of the forest where the objective lied. Somewhere below, he could hear the desperate cries of Ruby as she yelled out for her sister Yang and him in alternation, causing him to take a quick glance down below into the thickening and thinning portions of the canopy where he Ruby as she ran through the forest in the hopes of finding somebody familiar to her that she could team up with as she ran through all the people she had come across thus far through her head. Though, before he could speak up from his' aerial position, he noticed that she skidded to a stop as she approached a certain white-clad heiress, the action causing the both of them to look at each other and make eye-contact, establishing them as partners for the rest of their years at the academy, according to the rules of the trial anyway. Though unexpectedly, or expectedly depending on your outlook, Weiss Schnee quietly and quickly turned around and started to walk away, acting as if the entire experience she had just had with Ruby had never happened.

"Wait, where are you going?" Ruby yelled out as Weiss departed before looking down and kicking at the dirt dejectedly as she was ignored. "We're supposed to be teammates…"

'Oh, Ruby.' Gabriel thought sadly, looking down at the saddened form of his' friend from his' hovering position above the forest. He cursed himself for not showing up earlier to give Ruby the help she deserved for her test and for her life here at the academy, along with the fact that he couldn't reverse time with his' Pocket-Watch due to the heavy alterations he made to it and the promise he made to himself to never change the past under any circumstances. He then comforted himself with the belief that fate let these things happen for the future to be able to shine its brightest, even when sad moments like this made it seem so dark. Luckily enough, reprieve came in the form of a suddenly returning Weiss, whom had seen her other option, Jaune, as truly undesirable, and came back and dragged Ruby along by her hood.

"By no means does this make us friends." Weiss stated sternly as she continued to bring Ruby along with her, to which Ruby responded with an exuberant, "You came back!", as she brought her arms up in glee and relief at her partner's return.

'Yeah, I think she'll be just fine. They have each other now and if they want to pass this test, they're going to end up fighting Grimm sooner or later. And in a situation like this, you either learn to fight together, or fight alone and risk death… Hmm, a morbid thought, but a sound one.' Gabriel mused to himself as he looked down at the departing duo of Ruby and Weiss as they left the area, leaving another person marooned on a tree, a.k.a. Jaune Arc.

"Hey wait! Come back! Who's going to get me down from here?" Jaune shouted out desperately, struggling to get out of being pinned by the weapon to no avail and watching as the two girls left him alone. Noticing that they weren't coming back to help him, Jaune gave up trying to persuade them further and looked away forlornly as he thought he would be trapped there forever, or at least long enough to probably fail the test, but such a thought only lasted a moment until a voice called out to him from below.

"Jaune." The voice of Pyrrha said, grabbing Jaune's attention and causing him to look down at her from his' stranded position along the tree trunk. "Do you…have any spots left on your team?" Pyrrha asked innocently, turning side-to-side slightly as she patiently awaited his' answer.

"Very funny." Jaune stated in an unamused tone and crossed his' arms. Taking a moment to ponder the request as he hung on the tree by his' hood, Jaune continued to dangle minutely for a few moments before conceding to her and giving her a small, friendly grin for his' answer, a gesture which she happily reciprocated.

Glad to see the cooperative development between the two gender-swapped (in terms of their inspirations) candidates, Gabriel left them to their own devices before he examined the area from his' bird's-eye-view, intent on finding the ruins that he needed to head to in order to finish the test. Fortunately for him, in the distance he could see a worn edge of one of the larger walls of the ruins as it crested over the forest to the north, right where the headmaster said it would be. Unfortunately, before he could make his' way over to his' destination, he stopped as he heard the sound of a desperate yell of somebody below along with a series of monstrous growls. And as he looked below, he saw that he was indeed correct in the assumption that it was none other than the Grimm, who seemed to be surrounding the lone form of the winter-themed swordswoman, Weiss.

'Wait, where's Ruby?...Oh, geez… Well, I mean Weiss will be fine on her own, right?' The sound of more growls was heard below as more and more Grimm continued to flow through into the area around Weiss Schnee, shattering his' previous line of reasoning. 'Ugh, fine. Well, I guess it's as good a time as any to test out the new alterations to my guns, I suppose.' Gabriel thought as he slung off his' rifle hidden under his' cloak along his' back.

Bringing the anti-material rifle forward, Gabriel aimed the gun down towards the oblivious, dark creatures below. With that, he maintained the grip needed to fire the high-caliber weapon before he aimed along the magnified scope of the weapon, his' sights locked on a fairly large Grimm in particular, the pack-leader most likely.

His' hand twitched along the hairline trigger of his' weapon, and for an extremely brief instance, a red glow permeated all throughout the inner-workings of the weapon before becoming visible through the exposed chambers and mechanisms on the outside of the weapon.

Then, a small explosion rang out as a shot was fired, and then the pandemonium began.

* * *

 **A/N: Well, that's that and right now I'm going to go buy some pizza. So until next time, my dear readers: Good day, good night and good luck to all of you! ^_^**


	7. Camaraderie

**Disclaimer: I do not and will not own the rights to RWBY or Roosterteeth's other series/sub-series, that honor goes to those who work for the organization and Monty Oum for giving birth to his' marvelous brainchild, RWBY.**

* * *

"Before all of this, back when I was still but a boy, I lived a fairly unlucky, yet uneventful, life. One filled with sporadic bursts of change from forces outside of my control, all of which have brought me to this point. I've survived this long because I've had to make my own luck. Perhaps, I can go a little further…" –G.V.H.

* * *

In the Emerald Forest, various individuals moved about with varying amounts of purpose as they each tried to fulfill their own goals and motivations. Some went about trying to locate their main objective, the ruins, where they would find their artifact/item and hold onto it until the end of the test. Others went about trying to seek out other participants, particular those whom they wished to partner up with. Though only so many would be successful in that task, since others who attempted to do so would either end up being paired up with neutrally associated persons while the rest would be paired with whom they would consider unfavorable individuals. Though, in the course of all things, each person was met with their own particular hardship or trial in this oh-so-ominous forest. Some were utterly lost, others bickered with their partners and the rest were forced to face off with the main force of opposition in this initiation, the Grimm.

And amongst the last, unfavorable, category of results for someone to end up in, one Weiss Schnee found herself in a particularly bad situation. Though considering she was surrounded on all sides by the dark forces of the Grimm, the situation could not be considered anything _but_ terrible. Luckily for her, she had two things going for her: One, she was and is a highly skilled combatant, trained for years in a highly-disciplined swords(wo)manship regime under the careful tutelage of the best teachers the Weiss family could afford, along with careful guidance from the family itself at times as well.

And two? Well, she had the deadliest and most effective military force capable of any one person, short of armored units or an officer able to call in an artillery strike or other heavier versions of ordnance, covering her back. But, considering the capabilities of said reinforcer, he may as well have been a one man army. Still, as an infantryman alone, he was still the most deadly and feared type of enforcer known in military history.

Quite simply, he was a Sniper, an on-the-field tactician who could end any life on the battlefield with but a single pull of a trigger in the most effective way possible. And, in this moment, hovering on the wings of angels, this lone man looked through the crosshairs of his' rifle, looking down past the foliage of the forest and towards something on the ground below. Right now, there was nothing between him and his' target, and as he took but a single moment to inspect his' target, he aimed right for the universal weak-point of any macroscopic organism-the head. With his' sights locked and his' aim true, his' finger twitched slightly more than normal as he pulled the trigger of his' large caliber rifle. In that instance, the linings all throughout the weapon were illuminated with a slight, red glow before fading away just as quickly as it appeared. Then, the combustive flames of gunpowder and fire-based dust bellowed from the end of the weapon's barrel, launching a .50 caliber, armor-piercing round at super-sonic speeds from the magazine of the weapon, down the gun's rifling and out of the barrel of the weapon, concurrent with the hellish flames of the combustive chemical reaction. The round itself spiraled in air, causing it to travel with an uncanny precision present in all modern-age weapons. This continued for what felt like ages, but was quite literally only an instance, until the round itself dug through the plated armor surrounding the innards of the Beowolf's head and burying itself into said bits.

Almost instantly, the beast stopped moving as its body tried to process and reconfigure itself before realizing that many of its vital functions were failing due to the shattering of its main, biological hub, the brain. Thus, the beast's body stilled for but a moment before unceremoniously collapsing onto the ground below, its carcass beginning to sizzle away in smoky, black wisps, confirming that it was, in fact, quite dead.

Not even taking a further glance at the creature once his' first shot was fired, the marksman then swiftly swerved the weapon to the left, once again aiming at another of the creatures surrounding the young maiden and firing another shot into another one of the creatures and repeating the process.

On the ground of the forest however, the girl in question was shaken from her inner-musings and jolted forward slightly at the abrupt sound of gunfire as it pierced the tense silence present in the clearing before she looked up to the source of the noise. Looking at her unexpected savior, she could only look on as he fired shot after shot at their common foe before her eyes squinted as she tried to make out any details to help her identify said airborne individual. Soon enough, she caught sight of several distinct characteristics and came to a sudden realization as to who this person was.

"You?! What are **you** doing here?!" Weiss said, angry over having been interrupted by yet another person who she found particularly irking.

Firing a shot at a rather particularly large Beowolf, he continued his' task ceaselessly as he calmly and simply responded back to her query. "Helping."

'Aim, lock, fire.' ( **Boom** ) '… Oooh, I missed a bit on that one, it's still twitching. Let's fix that.' ( **Boom)** 'Ah, there we go.' He thought to himself off-handedly, trying to keep as much focus on the task at hand as he possibly could, lest the person he was trying to protect risk getting hurt as she continued to try to garner his' attention away from his' current task.

"I don't need your help! I was doing just fine on my own, thank you very much!" She said angrily, turning a bit off to the side and crossing her arms over one another, giving a small harrumph at the end of the sentence for emphasis.

( **Boom** ) "Really?" ( **Boom** ) "Because it looked like you were just standing there." ( **Boom** ) "Paying more attention to your form, rather than fighting." Gabriel rounded off, still taking potshots at the crowd of creatures around them, or more specifically: her. ( **Boom** ) 'Just how many of these things are there?'

"Hey! I'll have you know that footwork is the foundation to any reputable style of fighting! And any sensible person would know to respect the fundamentals!" She paused, finally glancing at him once again, though this time with a much harsher gaze, one that seemed to try to burn its way right through his' skull. "But it's not like you would know anything about respect." She said in a harsh, cold tone.

Shaken from his' calm state, he took a moment to recover from the icy tone she used and continued his' task before responding. "Well, then maybe you should do something worth respecting. Like treating others with the respect you expect in turn." ( **Boom** ) "Then _maybe_ we can get somewhere!" ( **Boom**. Click, Click, Click) "I'm out. Think you can watch my back for a sec while I find another magazine, Ice Queen?" He said in a curt manner as he dropped the empty magazine from his' gun before reaching a hand under his' cloak to retrieve another magazine.

Flinching a bit from her spot as the empty ammo casing fell from his' position to within feet of her own, she looked back up at him angrily, actually quite miffed by the nickname he had given her. Still, she had a reputation and a legacy to uphold and she wouldn't let this delinquent of all people set her off balance, emotionally speaking. Once again drawing her rapier and straightening herself out, she got into the proper stance associated with her disciplined training before casting a peripheral glance up towards him. "Hmph, I'm a Schnee. This type of opposition is nothing compared to the skill and grace my training has allowed me."

At the last remark, he silently and slowly started to float down until he too was on the ground, standing beside and slightly behind Weiss while the wings on his' back dissipated as he made landfall. Despite this change of vantage, his' hand still calmly ruffled under his' cloak as he still searched for a proper magazine for his' gun. Taking his' focus away from the enemies around them, he turned to glance back at her with a cool, neutral look. "So, need help finding the ruins, then?" He said, just as he found the spare magazine he was looking for and bringing it out of his' cloak and slamming it into the underside of his' gun.

"Oh please! As if I'd need your help to—"

"Gabriel!" A voice yelled out, breaking the young heiress' train of thought, causing her to flinch slightly at the abrupt noise.

Looking back slightly over her shoulder, Weiss saw a crimson blur as it cut across the edge of the clearing, taking in its' silhouetted features and characteristics, she soon came to realize that it was none other than the red-cloaked form of her partner, Ruby.

Skidding to a stop as she closed in, creating a fairly significant trail of dust behind her in the process, Ruby then closed the remaining space between her new-ish friend by leaping the last few feet with a small hop before latching onto his' arm playfully.

"There you are! I was looking for you, or Yang or Jaune, but I couldn't find any of you! But it's alright now, I guess." She shrugged a bit unsurely but still kept her somewhat cheery disposition. "Oh! And you won't believe who I ended up partnering with! It was that one Weiss girl, you know, the one we met right out of the airship and almost blew up? Yeah, but she's still kinda mean and a bit cranky, I think." Ruby said, pouting a bit as she remembered the unpleasant demeanor her partner always seemed to carry herself with, at least whenever _she_ was around, anyway.

"I am NOT Cranky!" Weiss said heatedly, fully turning to face the duo which had been standing behind her.

"Eep!" Ruby said, releasing Gabriel's arm only to swerve around him and take cover behind his' back. Peeking out from behind his' back, Ruby looked back at Weiss nervously. "See? She's still kinda mad at me and I don't even know why!" She complained, glancing at Gabriel for a moment before turning her sights back to Weiss.

"Well, maybe it's because you aren't taking this test as seriously as you should be. And instead of talking with boys, _maybe_ we should be trying to find the place we're supposed to go!" Weiss said sharply, bringing her arms up alongside her until they rested on her hips, giving both Ruby a look of chiding while giving brief, heated glares to Gabriel.

"Hey, I am too taking this test seriously!" Ruby said, standing out from the cover of Gabriel's back a bit more but not completely. "Maybe if you tried being a little nicer, maybe you'd have a lot more friends to talk to!" Ruby said defensively, not liking the idea that people thought of her as being incapable just because they thought she was a child or simply too young to be considered a 'mature' human being.

Aghast by Ruby's proclamation, Weiss visibly recoiled in shock from the unexpected retort. Then, just as suddenly, anger beginning to well in her very being, her features hardened as she gave a response of her own. "Hey, I can too make friends! In fact, everybody I've known has come to look up to me! All because I was the best! I've earned all their respect, so maybe if you stopped acting like such a child, maybe people could come to respect you too!" Weiss said indignantly, straightening up slightly as she finished the statement, her eyes sharpening drastically as well.

Gasping in shock from taking offense at the statement, Ruby moved up from behind Gabriel's back, ready to make a retort of her own until an arm crossed her path. Looking up the length of it, she saw that it was Gabriel who blocked her, and at the moment he looked at Ruby from behind the veil of darkness cast by his' hood before he shook his' head at her, as if silently telling her to back down now before her partnership with Weiss became too strained to repair. Seeing this, she hesitantly backed down from further reproaching the person that was supposed to be her partner and instead chose to cross her arms in front of her and pouting.

Seeing that Ruby had heeded his' unspoken request for the moment, Gabriel turned his' attention back to Weiss, giving her a patient look; though neither girl could see it at the moment, unfortunately. "Look. I know you two may not see eye-to-eye-"

"That's an understatement." Weiss interrupted, blowing a stray bit of hair out of her face irritably as she finished.

"—But we need to put our personal differences aside." He continued, casting a quick glance to Ruby, making sure she got the point, before just as quickly turning back to Weiss. "Like it or not. You're both partners and right now we're in the middle of a test, probably the most decisive one of our lives. But for the moment, we have much more immediate issues we should be dealing with." He said, waving an arm about, indicating the clearing around them.

Seeing the gesture, both girls turned to look all around them and stiffened slightly. Almost seeming like they had just _now_ realized the true extent of the danger they were in. Oddly enough, the creatures weren't particularly looking at either of the girls at the moment, but rather seemed to be focused on the white-cloaked individual in their midst. Seeing him out in the open, every creature's fur seemed to bristle and stand on end, their teeth gnashing together and creating the audible sound of clacking while their claws dug into the earth. Their eyes were filled with a malicious red glow neither of the Huntresses had ever seen or heard of before. The beast's sole attention seemed focused only on the man in white, almost as if the man himself was exuding some unknown aura or force that was compelling the creatures to act this way towards him. Though, for the moment, and for some unknown reason, the beasts hesitated in their attack, almost waiting for some clandestine or unknown signal to begin their attack on the group of warriors.

Slightly shaken by the sight, both girls turned back to Gabriel, their faces portraying a mix of seriousness, nervousness and uncertainty. Once their attention was back on him, he continued. "When we find the ruins and pick up whatever it is we have to find and pass this test, once we're all safe and sound, then you can work out whatever problems you have then. But, for right now, we need to make sure that we can all live to tell about this and I don't think these things will just let us mosey on out of here." And with that, he put away his' rifle and instead pulled out his' ever interesting scythe, _The Crescent Eclipse,_ from his' back and extended the weapon, causing it to protract with an audible series of nearly simultaneous clacks as the entire thing snapped into place. "Now, I don't know about the two of you, but I'd rather not waste any more time here than I have to. Which is why I'm going to have to cheat a bit." As he said this he pulled out the _Pocket-watch_ , gripping it securely in his' left hand while he handled the scythe with his' right.

"Now, could you please count to one?" He asked, raising a veiled eyebrow in question while his' finger was held right on the button to activate the device.

"Uh, one?" "One." Both Ruby and Weiss said simultaneously, both of them curiously waiting for whatever it was that he was going to do.

"Done. Come on, let's go." He said, nodding his' head towards the north while he tucked away the watch and rested the scythe across his' shoulders behind his' head before starting to walk in said aforementioned direction.

"Wait, what? What do you mean you're done? We still have to—" Though whatever else Weiss was going to say stopped cold on her lips as she finally looked around them to the threat bounding them there.

Around them, the ashy wisps of what were once Grimm now floated and drifted about, some left in indeterminate amounts of remains which slowly evaporated away due to their own unique physiology while others were disintegrated entirely, being nothing more than black dust carried along the wind. If one listened closely, you could still hear the dying cries of the beasts as they echoed on, forever lost in the indefinite realms of time and space.

Turning back to look back at both girls, Ruby doing much the same thing Weiss was doing and just staring in utter shock at the aftermath of whatever happened around them, Gabriel called back to them. "You ladies coming or did you just wanna catch the scenic route?" He said, grinning lightly in amusement.

Without a word, both girls turned and walked to catch up to him as he waited on them. Though just as Weiss met up with him, standing on his' right while Ruby took his' left side, she couldn't help but ask the obvious.

"Just… What did you do back there? I didn't even see you move." Weiss asked in confusion, getting a rapidly nodding head from Ruby as she too wished to know the specifics, if any, on what had just happened. Though Ruby did have a fair idea of what he used in order to accomplish this feat, though she didn't know he could use it to this degree.

As he stood there, looking down at Weiss slightly from his' fair height, he seemed to scrutinize her for a couple of tense moments, almost measuring the weight of his' answer as he mulled around exactly what he wanted to tell and how he wanted to tell it. Then, after a few moments of pondering and looking at both girls, he came to a conclusion at last and gave them an answer.

"Magic." He said in a deadpan tone , waving his' hands in front of him melodramatically for emphasis. On the inside, he was laughing his' ass off. However, the only tell that one could see that would provide any indication of this state of thought would be the small grin which quickly found itself on his' face, along with the small bit of mirth that his' eyes now held.

For a couple moments, Weiss just stood there, eye twitching and mouth agape as her mind tried to comprehend the sheer inanity of the answer. However, after getting over the initial surprise the response left her in, Weiss' face and demeanor changed dramatically, fixing itself with an angry sneer as she quickly marched the few remaining feet between her and Gabriel and jabbed a finger in his' chest angrily while she looked him in the eye as best she could.

"I don't know who you think you are. But if you think I'll let you get away with such drivel for an answer, you have another thing coming!" She said heatedly, her sneering face showing she was anything but amused.

Still looking down at her as she criticized his' answer, he gave her a blank look before reaching a hand up and quickly holding onto the wrist of the hand whose finger had been repeatedly jabbing itself at his' chest. Once he had her hand, and her attention, he spoke up. "…So, do you really want to know?"

"Yes!" Weiss said in an impatient tone, eager to hear more about what exactly he was capable of doing.

Looking at Ruby through his' peripheral vision, her standing on idly as she watched both Weiss and him curiously, he then gazed blankly back at Weiss. "Are you familiar with the idea of, 'Time Manipulation'?" He asked, tilting his' head slightly as he asked the question.

"No, I'm afraid I'm not quite familiar with the concept, but I'm guessing it has something to do with controlling time in some sort of way or fashion?" Weiss responded, freeing her arm from his' hold as she looked back at him neutrally, genuinely curious as to the nature of this topic.

"You would be right." He confirmed, before turning around slightly, gesturing his' head towards the forest. "I'll tell you more about it on our trip to the objective. This way, please." He said, deciding to end the statement politely as to appeal to Weiss' sense of conduct, trying to at least ease his' way back into her favor and make the trip easier on all of them. At least it'd be a start, anyway.

Standing back slightly more at ease from her once-tense stature to a more casual one, shifting her weight on one leg while she rested a hand on her hip, she responded in kind. "Alright. Let's get going then." And with that, she walked forward, nearly passing him on her way to the edge of the clearing before he caught up to her, walking in stride with her as they both made their way North.

"Wait for me!" Ruby said, jogging behind the two and waving a hand up to get their attention. Though, given that she had a specialty in speed, she would have no trouble in catching up to them otherwise.

Once she had reached the end of the clearing, Weiss turned around to wait for her comrades to reach her and took a moment to look between the two people she had come across already during the test, her gaze finally settling on Gabriel. 'If I play my cards right, I'll have another smart and powerful person on my side. Then, my conquest of Beacon will be one step closer! But, for now, sating a bit of my own curiosity wouldn't hurt.' And with that, she quickly followed the other two as they entered into the forest, marking the beginning of their collaborative future as students-to-be at Beacon Academy.

Unbeknownst to the trio, a large, black feather floated down along a tree, right behind where they had just entered the forest, indicating that something very experienced and very, very dangerous was nearby. And today, its sights were set on the three of them.

* * *

 **A/N: Hey lads and ladies, glad to be back. Sorry for the wait, it's been awhile and many have probably figured that I left the story behind. Well, that just isn't the case; I plan to see this story through to the end, no matter how long it takes. Though, I'm sure it may be a while until it's done, years even.**

 **Now, as to the reasoning for the fairly large delay… well, there are several explanations as to why. First, I kinda got stuck in replaying the Mass effect series from scratch, so that took a bit of my time, though I finished the series for the last time, so no worries there. Second, I had to help some family move around. No biggie, but it just took a while to settle them in and I still have to help them move into their new home, so there may be another fairly sized break again. Finally, I had to deal with studying for my finals for my extra summer courses at college, so I'll be busy for a little bit longer.**

 **Still, glad to be doing this and I only hope for the best. Love you guys/gals. This is The Brutal Legend, logging out.**


	8. Luckless Happenstance

**Disclaimer: I do not and** _ **will**_ **not own the rights to RWBY or any other Rooster Teeth production. Nor will I ever want to own RWBY… unless Monty left it in his' will for me to do so and it wasn't revealed until now. Then, I would have no other choice** _ **but**_ **to do so. Still, I'm almost completely certain that that happening isn't even a possibility. So, on with the story!~**

* * *

"If the person that I am changes, then my life becomes a different story."-G.V.H.

* * *

Below the open, blue expanse of the sky above, the ground did reside. Both of them quite vast, their limits uncontained as they circled one another like the physical embodiment of push and pull, that one without the other would leave the rest to ruin in some form or fashion. Both massive entities held their own particular features and fixtures. For example, the sky held air for which creatures and plants breathed and thrived off of. It also held shapeless, white clouds that defied Remnant's almighty gravitational pull as they drifted off ignorantly to wherever the wind directed it to, some even destined to become rain to seed life on the world below. The ground itself, however, held a vastly contrary set of features unique only to its landscapes and water bodies. For instance, the ground held water, which allowed life to thrive and grow, culminating and expanding into various complex organisms and subspecies, some nearly the same while others were vastly different. Though, they all held their own particular purpose in this world as they continued to live their own independent yet intertwined existences, where they would all culminate to create one story of the world.

However, some of the more remarkable features of the world existed not in biology, but in geography, the study of terrain. The planet held a wide assortment of topography, from snow, to fire, to rock and stone and dust to greenery. To list off every distinct feature of the world would take quite a surmountable effort to do, one not readily available at this time and place. Though one setting that will be entailed upon in this instance will not be as apparently interesting as say, a volatile lava field or a harsh valley of ice, but a rather more simplistic yet much more complex area altogether.

In this instance, as earth and sky meet as they always have, two people stood atop a lush cliff, overlooking an even lusher area of land known as The Emerald Forest. In that forest, many individuals wandered about, seeking out a single point where many of them would come to meet, come to fight or come to survive. Here, these people, these… children, if you could call them that, had one purpose in mind: Claim the objective and return with it to this cliff. These two individuals, however, would seek not substance, but rather insight. Insight into the minds, the capabilities and the virtues or each and every participant in the forest below.

Even now, they both continued to watch the participants, both keen, yet patient, to see the qualities known of each individual take form and take flight in this test of wits and will. Here, only the strong would survive and only the best would succeed.

So, they waited and watched, looking at their own personal devices which showed the feeds of devices placed within and without the forest; the latter being through the lens of a camera on a particular prototype aerial vehicle which soared high above the terrain, camouflaged from even the keenest of eyes by both a painted sky pattern along its rather small hull and a layer of adaptive cloaking panes inlayed upon aforementioned hull. And it was at this time that the more feminine member of the two came walking up the crest of the hill, carrying her own handheld monitoring device as she looked at its feed, and without even look up from said visual information spoke up to her superior, once she was within speaking range, about the events transpiring in the forest below.

"Our last pair has been formed, Sir. Nora Valkyrie and Lie Ren." The woman known as Glynda Goodwitch said, taking a small pause as she reflected on her next point of interest on this particular pair. "Poor boy. I can't possible imagine those two getting along." She said in an almost despondent tone before continuing. "Still, he's probably better off than Ms. Nikos." At that latter statement, she switched her feed over to said individual(s).

In response, Ozpin merely grunted his' affirmation to her statement, paying keen attention to both her and his' own video feeds.

Still on the train of thought of the previous observations, she continued. "I don't care what his' transcripts say, that Jaune fellow is not ready for this level of combat." And with the conclusion of that statement, she deactivated the feed from her device before shutting it off entirely, saving the scroll for later use.

"I guess we'll find out soon enough." Goodwitch said, turning around and preparing to head down the hill once again. "At their current pace, they'll reach the temple in just a few minutes." She said before halting her advance, turning around completely to face her colleague as a particular question rose up within her mind. "Speaking of which, what did you use for relics this year?... Professor Ozpin?" She asked with an imploring look in her eye as she gazed at him, his' back to her.

Ignoring that particular question, Ozpin instead grunted noncommittally as he instead chose to keep rapt attention to his' own particular feed, watching and listening as he switched from one device to another as the group of individuals in the video traveled towards their goal. Though he continued to pay particular attention to what was being spoken of amongst the group of three.

* * *

 **(Location-Emerald Forest)**

An arm pushed itself through the greenery in front of it, clearing away the shrubbery obscuring its connected body minutely yet just enough to allow the small troupe of young warriors to continue their path relatively unimpeded. As they traveled along, the group continued to discuss the matter at hand, namely one of the more daunting abilities the figure in the lead possessed.

Brushing off a particular troublesome twig off of her shoulder, Weiss Schnee continued along the path she and her colleagues had set upon in order to reach their target as quickly as possible. And so far, nothing had yet to interrupt their journey, which was fine if not for the fact that the previous Grimm they encountered seemed to want nothing more than to find and rip apart their pseudo-leader for reasons unknown to any of them; well, as far as she knew anyway, but that would be a puzzle to solve for another time.

For now, though, she would rather continue her talk with said individual about a specific skill he possessed.

"So, what you're saying is: By clicking that button on the side of that pocket-watch, through a complex series of mechanisms and functionalities, you can stop the progression of time of anything else outside the immediate radius of the device?" Weiss asked, flinching slightly as a nearby branch got caught on one of her shirt sleeves and nearly ripped a hole in it. Luckily enough for her, she dislodged it from her person before any real harm could come from it.

As he walked, Gabriel noticed a low hedgerow which lay perpendicular to their course, which would soon encumber their course unless they had some way to bypass it. Luckily for them, his' own personal powers nearly made him a skeleton key, so with but a small shimmer of black energy, he walked clean through the hedge, disintegrating the shrubbery and creating a man-sized path for the others, who followed behind him wordlessly. Deactivating his' ability, he answered the girl's question. "Yeah, that about sums it up. Though, unfortunately for either of you or anyone else, only I am capable of using it; It's attuned to function only in the residual presence of my powers and if anyone else were to try to alter the device, it'd destroy itself and anything immediately touching it. So, here's hoping no petty fool tries to steal it." He said, emphasizing the point by patting the front of his' chest directly above where the device lay within the confines of his' cloak.

"Yeah, right. Gotcha. Hehehehe." Weiss said nervously, shrinking away slightly at the mention of the risks of taking such a tool. 'Darn, who knows what I could have accomplished if I had a device like that! Still, I have to wonder…'

"So, then why do you have it? What makes you so special that only you would have and use something like that in the first place? If you don't mind me asking, that is." Weiss asked, tucking away some stray hairs that fell in front of her face.

"Oh, not at all Weiss." He said, returning her polite attitude. Though mentally, he chuckled to himself at her suddenly withdrawn nature, now that he had something she wanted: an explanation. "In a sense, I sort of built it. Not from scratch, mind you. I got it from an old man and it was the last thing he gave me when he died. I studied his' plans for a long time before I was really able to grasp what it was that he was working on, since at the time when I discovered it, it was unstable yet actually capable of going back in time. But, nobody should have such power, not even I. So, to make it safer, I changed it so that it would be capable of stopping time, rather than transgress it. The energy signature feature was more of an afterthought for security than anything, really." He explained, looking around the forest for any indication of danger, Ruby doing much the same as she silently listened in on the exchange at the back of the group; though it was mostly just making her bored, having heard him explain the details of the ability-if you could call it such-beforehand. Meanwhile, she kept a watchful gaze and a careful ear out for anything out of the ordinary that would indicate an attack on them as they walked through the somewhat-thick underbrush of the forest.

"So that's it? You just sort of found it, then?" Weiss asked skeptically, looking him over critically from behind as she continued to follow him.

"Well, yeah. What else did you expect? That I was some grand prodigy of space and time and created it or that some benign overlord gave it to me for safe keeping?" Gabriel asked, unamused by her indifferent response to his' small explanation on the device.

"No! I was just expecting something a bit more… intriguing. Like a team of highly knowledgeable individuals came together to work on making a device so powerful it could affect time and space and you just so happened to be the test subject. You know, for the sake of knowledge and such." She said whimsically, turning away slightly as to not be directly caught in his' backwards glance as she began to blush.

Raising an eyebrow at her, he could only give an amused look towards her before facing forward to continue their trek. Fortunately, their walk seemed to pay off as they finally reached a rather nondescript clearing, one which would make a nice place to take a break in.

Walking into the center of the moderately-sized clearing, Gabriel examined the area and concluded there was no immediate danger. So, he turned around to address his' small troupe to discuss their next course of action.

"Alright, we're almost at the ruins now. So, we should take the moment to take a breather and check our gear to make sure everything is working as it should be. I mean, who knows what we might have to face when we get there, you know?" He reasoned, looking to either girl in case they had any other qualms or suggestions about the situation.

"Yeah, that sounds good." Ruby said simply before unhooking _Crescent Rose_ from her back and extending it, flipping open latches and locks in order to quickly check the inner workings of the rifling and other mechanisms of the weapon, though she seemed a bit too eager to do so; more than likely in part due to the boredom from some of the semantics exchanged between the two braniacs in the group with her and also because of her almost inborn knack for weaponry; It was her hobby after all and she didn't need to be told twice to get started on it.

Weiss, however, stood with her arms crossed over one another on her chest before waving one of her hands up as she said, "What makes you think we're going to run into anything? It's probably a safe zone or something that we could use to rest at as well. I mean, aren't we wasting our time here by waiting?"

"And what if it isn't?" Gabriel said, a bit more harshly then he intended to before continuing in a much more sedate voice. "What if we go in there and it's just another ambush waiting for us or some other obstacle we have to overpower in order to actually get our relic? Like, if there are only a couple of relics there and we have to face off against other teams in order to even have a chance in accomplishing this test? So, it'd be best if we were a bit more rested and prepared for such a situation, just in case the worst-case-scenario does happen." He explained calmly, looking her dead in the eye all the while.

Taking a couple moments as she pondered over what he had just said, she relented that he did have a point and that she would rather be ready to give it her absolute all to claim the relic. So, with a heavy sigh, she relaxed her pose until both arms were at her side, though she laid one hand down onto the handle of her weapon, _Myrtenaster_. "Fine, but let's hurry then! If we fail this test because we were late by even a second, you will experience first-hand the culmination of years worth of Weiss-family training!" She said with a slight scowl on her face while pointing a finger with her free hand angrily at him before calming down a bit and raising her weapon from its holder and examining it, keeping an eye out for any discrepancies along the dust chambers and barrel of the weapon.

"I'll keep that in mind." Gabriel muttered lowly. "I'm gonna be watching the tree line for any Grimm. Let me know when you two are ready to go." He said, saying the last bit over his' shoulder as he turned around and walked a bit away from the partnered duo, taking out his' sniper rifle in the process and using it to examine the area.

"Gotcha." Ruby said absent-mindedly, focused more on checking the combustive systems of the weapon rather than anything else outside of her work. Weiss herself didn't say anything but instead gave a short nod as she too clasped and unclasped sections of her weapon to make sure it didn't need to be refilled with any extra dust, which she kept on her person in case of such emergencies. It was during this time of maintenance that neither girl noticed the small black dot in the sky which continued to grow larger and larger as the distance between it and their group grew shorter with each passing moment.

A minute passed in silence as both girls stood beside one another as they worked tediously on their weapon maintenance. And just as they both nearly simultaneously finished their work and were just about to speak up, their next words were interrupted as a swift gust of wind passed through the area just before they both felt the feeling of weightlessness as gravity gave way as they were quickly and silently snatched away by avian claws.

Back in the clearing, the accompanying gust of wind jolted Gabriel from his' vigil, causing him to start turning back around to the two. "It's been a good minute. Are you two ready to head o—" It was then that he paused as he noticed the distinct lack of presences of one peppy and one not-so-peppy girl. It was at this moment that he noticed a large, black feather drift down into the clearing before softly landing on the ground before him. As soon as that happened, he abruptly looked up as he heard the fading echo of the girl's yells in the distance. Looking to the skies, he could see the soaring form of the avian creature as it departed from the area, probably to its nest or another suitable area to deposit its cargo for consumption or eradication. However, its course was already taking it to the north and any moment now it would be passing through the airspace above the ruins, where there were bound to be other people to whom it could terrorize and threaten.

Looking on with an almost too calm look on his' face for any sane man to normally have, Gabriel's left eye twitched minutely as his' mind finally processed the random occurrence. "So… it's going to be like that then, huh?" He said aloud to nobody in particular. A moment passed before he heaved a heavy sigh and slumped forward a bit, almost appearing to be in agony from the sheer incredulity of the situation. Then, after a moment, he straightened back out again and unslung his' rifle off his' back. Aiming down the weapon's scoped sights, he could clearly make out the forms of both Ruby and Weiss as they both tried to struggle free from the bird-Grimm's grasp, their outfits ruffling wildly as the air around them impacted against and flowed around them.

'I could understand if it were Beowolves or even some Ursa we had to deal with, but this shit is getting ridiculous!' He mentally ranted to himself before calming down as he though over his' next course of action. 'Well, I can't leave them both like that. Looks like I've got to help them out a bit this time.' He thought, closing an eye as he aimed down the weapon and took in account the adjustments and measures needed to take the shot he had in mind. 'Let's see if I can give them a hand by taking out another. God, don't let me miss this shot…'

A moment later, a shot rang out. And then, there was silence…

* * *

 **(Location-Ruins)**

Down in the ruins below, various collapsed walls and crumbled floorings marred this particular part of the forest, showing that at some time in the past, this may have once been a meeting ground or ritual center; though whatever it once was, was now forgotten in the passages of time itself. This was the sight two girls came upon as they arrived, seeking their own artifact to claim to gain admittance into Beacon Academy. Walking into the area, both girls surveyed opposing sides of the ruins, examining each artifact as they passed by them.

Examining a particular piece, Blake was the first to speak up. "Chess Pieces?" She asked questioningly, examining a particularly important piece of chess known simply as-The Black King.

On her side, Yang looked at an empty pedestal and said, "Some of them are missing. Looks like we weren't the first ones here." She said observantly, looking around to the other pedestals which held other various chess pieces, seeing which ones were taken and which ones were still present to pick and take back.

Facing back towards her partner, Blake responded. "Well, I guess we should pick one." And with that, they both looked around to each of the pieces, with Blake looking on her side which held black pieces while Yang's side held golden pieces. Eventually though, Yang came upon a particularly likable piece, the 'white' knight piece, and promptly picked it up.

"How about a cute little pony?" She asked whimsically, turning to Blake while blatantly holding up her item.

Rolling her eyes in amusement at the statement, Blake responded with a playful smile at Yang's spirited attitude and said, "Sure.", before she began making her way towards Yang.

Once they met up at the center of the circular stone area, Yang lightheartedly commented, "That wasn't so hard."

"Well, it's not like this place is very difficult to find." Blake responded, sharing a cheerful grin with Yang at their success of the mission so far. However, a shine from her peripheral vision caught her eye, causing her to turn to the left towards an, until now, unnoticed feature. While the area they were in held many surrounding pillars adorned with a particular chess piece, there was a lone pillar at the center of the ruins, this one seemingly made of relatively newer stone than the others around it; perhaps it had been especially made for the unique item which sat atop it? Sitting atop the pillar was a rather nondescript-looking piece of note-paper. However, as she silently walked over to the item, her sudden silence also gaining Yang's attention and causing her to follow Blake to the object as well, and took notice that instead of a priceless item of interest, it was instead a simple sheet of plain, white paper. Her innate curiosity piqued, Blake reached forward, and after taking a momentary glance to either side of her, and picked the note up and brought it towards her face.

With the item in hand, Blake looked over its contents, with Yang curiously looking over her shoulder at the note as well, and began silently reading its cursively scripted contents.

 _Dear Reader,_

 _ **Warning**_ _: If you are not Gabriel Van Helsing, you are prohibited from reading any further into the contents of this document. We kindly ask those who are not said above-mentioned person to cease their intrusive actions and return to their task of retrieving, retaining and returning their chosen artifact to the location stated by the attending staff._ _ **Failure to comply with stated instructions will result in the voiding of the violator's eligibility to attend Beacon academy and its programs. This item is under careful surveillance, so any examination of the contents of the reversed side of this item will be noted and considered a violation of this warning and result in the previously stated consequences.**_ _So, please, any other examinees, promptly set down this document and cease any further examination_ _at once and return to your assigned task._

 _Thank you and have a nice day._

 _And to Mr. Van Helsing: Please review the contents on the reverse side of this document and consider the information accordingly. That is all._

 _Sincerely,_

 _Faculty of Beacon Academy._

As she finally read through the not-so-subtle warning given on the letter, Blake then slowly and carefully heeded its advice, unwilling to risk failure after venturing as far as they have, and set the item back down atop the stone pillar, returning it back to the same fashion they had previously discovered it in; briefly, Blake wondered how many others had come across here and wondered how many, if any, had disregarded the warning given on the note and learned of its hidden secrets, whatever they may be; even now, she had to greatly resist her own sense of curiosity over what was detailed on the other half of the document, but in the end, it was her own sense of professionalism that kept such instincts away and lead her back to the task-at-hand.

Turning back around to her partner, whom had leant back from over Blake's shoulder and leaned back with her arms crossed over one another over her chest, Yang simply asked: "So, what was that all about?" The reason for the query being that she was more of a simple-print gal and was unused to reading cursive lettering. Thus, she wasn't quite as fluent in the artistic font printed on the document as Blake and had immediately stopped trying to figure out its elusive contents, figuring she could just ask her teammate what it was all about afterwards.

Taking a brief glance over her shoulder back to the item of interest, she looked back to Yang and said, "Well, it was a warning. Stating that the letter was only for the eyes of a: Gabriel Van Helsing, which I assume was the same guy that we met in the ballroom last night. Seems the staff has something important for him to do when he gets here, _if_ he gets here…" She left off ominously, looking around the area carefully as she considered the fact that the Grimm here could have possibly eliminated him from the trial altogether.

Giving a light-hearted scoff in reply, Yang gave her own response. "Oh, I'm sure he's fine! Besides, if they went through the trouble of leaving it here for him in the middle of a Grimm-infested forest, I'm sure they had some confidence that he would get here to find it."

Ceasing her watch of the area, after finding no immediate threat in the area, Blake saw the reason in Yang's statement. "Yes, perhaps you're right. It would be a waste for them to go through all this effort just so that the intended recipient would perish just before arrival." She paused, looking around them to the edges of the forest that acted as the perimeter which bordered the ruins. "Though that does beg the question: Where is he, then?"

As they both thought on this question for a moment, the silence was quickly interrupted as a girlish scream rang out, jarring them both from thought.

"Some girl's in trouble!" Yang exclaimed worriedly, turning around and looking in the general direction where the sound came from. "Blake, did you hear that? What should we do?" Yang asked, turning around to face the kunoichi-esque girl. Blake, however, was more focused on another subject entirely, namely the falling form of Yang's sister, Ruby, watching in dismay as Ruby got closer and closer to them… and the ground. Eventually, the red-clad girl was close enough to where she could be heard by the two partners, proven as they heard the following statement from the rapidly descending youth:

"Heads uuuuuuuppppppp!"

And thus, the road to calamity began…

* * *

 **A/N: Yeah, sorry for taking a while to release this chapter, which, now that I think about it, wasn't a very long delay compared to what some people take to do so. Still, I would have released it a couple days sooner, but I got complacent and had to also deal with babysitting some teenage relatives of mine. So, anyway, next chapter's going to be a doozy so I might not be able to update the story for a while until I sort out writing and planning the next chapter of this story and also dealing with my life at hand. Also, you might wanna just skim through my previous story (particularly section/part 4) because some elements from that story will really start to transition over into the next, few chapters or so and I don't want you all to be too lost. Who knows, you might like what you find there, so, here's hoping you do!** ^-^

 **Until next time, dear readers. TBL, logging out.**


	9. Preamble

**Disclaimer: I shall not infringe upon the original rights to RWBY, as those creative freedoms belong to RoosterTeeth and their other subsidiary or other authorized third-party groups. However, I have free reign over this story and its own independent ideas and where this particular adaptation will go. So, let's not dally any longer and get on with this story, shall we?~**

* * *

"People sometimes ask why I don't like to ask for help. Well, it really comes down to this: I don't like to see people carry my own burdens upon their shoulders, no matter how light they make it seem; Those are mine to carry and I would be loath to even let the Lord himself carry even an ounce of my sins. _I_ made these choices, only _I_ should be the one to have to deal with the consequences of it all, nobody else."-G.V.H.

* * *

 **(Location-Cliff overlooking the Emerald Forest)**

"What do you mean you don't know?! It's a Class-A threat, how could it have gone through undetected until now?!" The voice of one Glynda Goodwitch said, yelling into a small scroll which was pinned between her shoulder and cheek while she furiously tapped and swiped through a larger one in her hands, trying her best to understand and adapt to the current situation.

"This test isn't rated for handling a danger of this magnitude, we have children down there!" She said, pausing as the person on the other end of the line responded before she once again continued her tirade. "I don't care how you do it, we need immediate aid as soon as possible! Reinforcements, equipment, whatever! But, we need it _now_! This is a serious situation we have on our hands!" She again waited, the person once again speaking up from their end and giving details on the damage control group.

A few moments passed as she silently marched up and down a small section of the hill she was on before the other person finished their explanation, to which she responded with, "We need whatever and whoever you can bring. A full team of veteran Huntsmen and Huntresses is required to defeat a threat this large, so it is imperative that we act as effectively as possible before any harm can be done to the students!" She paused as the person calmly tried to placate her worries momentarily before she finally replied with, "Alright. Please, just hurry." And with that she freed one of her hands and gathered the scroll from her shoulder and closed the call, tucking away the device into one of the linings of her outfit before turning back to the large scroll in her other hand. On it was a short clip from one of the outlying cameras placed near one of the outer sections of the forest to detect any wayward or deserting students of the initiation, though in this instance, it caught something that was anything but human or even faunus.

Pausing the short video, a blurry and static image of a face was shown. Though the details of the image were largely obstructed, the sheer size of the figure in the image, as well as its general shape, gave rise to one culprit-an alarmingly enormous one in particular. And though its intentions were seemingly unclear, it was fairly certain that it wasn't going to stop in for a friendly chat over a cup of tea.

So, with image in hand, and in mind, Glynda walked along the beaten path along the cliff before arriving at its peak for the umpteenth time that day. And standing on its peak was none other than her superior and long-time friend, Headmaster Ozpin, who was already up-to-date on the situation.

Strolling up until she stood a few feet behind him, she paused for a few moments as she collected her thoughts and spoke up to the wise man.

"I called the Chief of security at Beacon. He said he'd be sending all able-bodied personnel as well as some of the staff to assist in quelling this problem. I can only hope that they get here in time…" She trailed off worriedly, taking a quick glance back to the still image on the scroll in her hands before looking back up to Ozpin, silently awaiting his' reply.

Ozpin, however, seemed largely indifferent to the threat at hand as he watched various video feeds on his' device. One half of screen was taken up of live video footage from the airborne drone deployed earlier that day while the other half cycled through various angles to capture a glance of the students as they enclosed on their instructed destination. He took a moment to look over it all before he responded to Glynda in a calm tone:

"Once they arrive, have them ready on standby." He told her, his' sole attention remaining on the feed of the students before him. Glynda, though, felt that this was a particularly unfavorable action to take.

"Standby!?" Glynda said, outraged. "This isn't a game, Ozpin! These students are in _real_ danger. I could understand how they could work together to handle a simple Deathstalker or even a Nevermore, but they're nowhere near ready to handle-"

"Do you trust me, Ms. Goodwitch?" Ozpin asked simply.

"I- W-What? Of course I do. I thought you'd know that by now." Glynda responded, thrown off by the distant tone he addressed her with while also confused to where he was going with this sudden change in topic.

"Good. Now, just listen to my request and have the response force lay in reserve. We might need them later but I don't want them to interrupt this test at the moment." He said as calm as ever, perhaps a bit more than what some would consider reasonable for this time and moment.

"Do you know how much danger that would be placing the students in?! They're just kids, Ozpin! They don't know what they're getting into!" Glynda said erratically, rushing up until she stood over Ozpin's shoulder, gazing at his' profile with a temperamental, questioning look.

"They knew the risks going in. Now, they're going to have to learn how to face the unexpected or face the consequences of failure. If things get out of hand we'll step in, but not a moment sooner, Glynda. Have a little faith in them, will you?" He said coolly, giving her a meaningful look through a quick sideways glance before once again turning his' attention back to observing the students, awaiting their next course of action.

Meanwhile, Glynda could only grunt angrily at his' rather lax approach on the situation before quickly settling down and taking a step away from him and turning back to her own scroll.

And as she continued to gaze back into the image on the scroll, so too did the image also gaze back into her. And, in that moment, an icy chill of fear ran down along her spine…( **A/N: Figuratively, mind you. Pictures can't turn to look back at you, silly.** )

* * *

 **(Location- Emerald Forest, Ruins)**

Life holds many opposing forces; two sides of a coin if you will: where one side falls, the other rises.

Push and pull. Darkness and light. Beginning and end.

Birth and Death…

Some of these concepts are much more… _conceivable_ than others, and those that we understand tend to become mundane in our everyday existences. So, for now, let's stick with a much simpler concept.

Today, we look at the simple difference between serenity and chaos- calmness versus calamity. And today, we take notice of a particular instance where one state changes from one to the other. And that starts with another contrasting yet intertwined set of motions:

What goes up must come down… and one Ruby Rose was not meant to fly. Thus, bringing us back up to speed on this course of events, so let's not dawdle any further on this confounding topic and get back to the story, shall we?

"Heads uuuuup!" The aforementioned Ms. Rose said to those below desperately, waving her arms and legs frantically as the earth rushed to meet her, most likely painfully. Though as the air-to-ground Ruby-rocket seemed to get closer and closer to colliding smack-dab onto both her sister, Yang, and Blake Belladonna, the two watching the falling young girl confoundedly, unsure of what quite to do, they were all in a sense saved as Ruby's small yell of fear and warning was cut-off as another aptly-timed flying body smashed into her own, belonging to none other than the always-misfortunate Jaune Arc. Luckily enough, his' actions caused them to brace one another's falls, deflecting them both safely into the nearby canopy of trees, softening their once-hazardous landings.

Looking on confusedly at the strange sight, Blake and Yang looked in the direction of the two impactees before Blake asked the obvious. "Did your sister just fall from the sky?" She said, looking up at said sky for any other unexpected occurrences that may yet come.

"I—" Yang was going to say, but any response she was going to give was interrupted as a bestial whine made itself known in the immediate area, drawing both girl's attention to their right, to the edge of the clearing. A couple moments passed as they looked at the heavily forested area in front of them before a small set of trees was uprooted, followed by a shakily standing bear-like Grimm as it teetered on its hind legs, knocking away everything in its path as it moved as directed. A few moments later, a pink blast emanated from its back, causing it to cease its motions as its body completely failed itself and flopped forward onto the ground, dead. At the action, a pink blur rolled off the Ursa-Grimm's back, over its head and onto the ground before it.

"Aww, it's broken." The pink object said disappointedly as she sat up, revealing itself to be none other than the ever-boisterous Nora Valkyrie. Quickly racing back to the Ursa, Nora quickly stood atop the dead creature's back as she examined its devastated state. Meanwhile, her partner and friend, Lie Ren, slowly approached from the trail of carnage they, Nora and commandeered victim, left behind, stumbling as he finally got his' footing before leaning on the beast as he desperately attempted to catch his' breath after rushing to keep up with his' partner.

"Nora!" Ren said loudly, getting the pinkette's attention. "Please," He said before pausing to catch his' breath again. "Don't ever do that again." Though as he finished the statement and looked up, he quickly noticed that, to his' horror, his' friend had once again disappeared. Thus, causing him to quickly look around the area to catch any sight of her or where she may have went, worried about any other shenanigans she may or may not have suddenly gotten into.

"Oooohhh!" Luckily for him, nearby, Nora examined one of the remaining relics curiously, interested in this one in particular because of its castled appearance, this one in particular being referred to as: the 'white' rook, which shined minutely as light from the sun glanced off of it.

After a brief moment of examination, Nora indelicately grasped the relic and brought it up excitedly in her hands and singing aloud a little jingle. "I'm queen of the castle! I'm queen of the castle!" She sang along cheerfully, displaying the piece in differing fashions as she got into various poses during the song, the last one leaving her balancing on one foot with the white rook teetering on her head precariously.

"Nora!" The discouraging voice of Ren said some distance away, causing her to cease in her merriment in the previously mentioned pose before straightening up. Following the brief pause, she promptly replied with, "Coming Ren!", in a merry tone before promptly tilting her head to the side, teetering the balancing relic to one side of her head and causing it to fall off entirely before catching it with the practiced ease that came with years' worth of martial training and reflexes as she began frolicking gaily back to her partner with their relic in-hand.

Behind the ditsy girl, Yang commented on the younger girl's arrival. "Did that girl ride in on an Ursa?" She said in confusion, waving her hand as she denoted said girl as she skipped away.

In response, Blake could only say, "I—" before she too was interrupted as _another_ inhuman roar caught their attention.

In the distance ahead of them, they could make out movement in the tree-line before even more trees than before were cast aside as another, larger beast made its presence known, following right on the heels of the 'prodigy' student, Pyrrha Nikos.

The beast's mandibles clicked ferociously as it gave chase to the young woman before swinging one it its large claws at the girl, intending to catch her off balance and finish her off swiftly and ruthlessly. Though, as the beast's large claw was just about to impact its target, the athletic girl leaped through the gap present between the upper and lower portion of the claw and allowed Pyrrha to dodge the attack completely before rolling along the ground with her landing and seamlessly resumed her running. Then, still hotly pursued by the Deathstalker, she urgently called out for her partner:

"Jaune!".

"Pyrrha!?" In a nearby tree, Jaune swiveled around in his' inverted spot within the brush of the tree, desperately looking around for his' endangered ally as he began to try to struggle out of the tangled position he found himself in.

"Woah!" Ruby said, enraptured by the happenings below from her vantage point in the trees before she quickly got up from her crouched position. As she got up, she took off down along the branch before leaping off of it entirely. Behind her, Jaune cried out a quick yet futile, "Ruby!" as he outstretched his' arms for her to try to help him out from his' trapped position, being stuck within the thick foliage of the tree they had both landed in, keen to assist his' friend, Pyrrha, as soon as possible; unfortunately, Ruby either hadn't heard him or simply left his' small cry unheeded as she simply leapt off the high-ground to the ruins below, rolling as she made land-fall.

"Ruby?" A voice off to her side said as she landed, gaining the young girl's attention. Looking to her right, she caught sight of her beloved older sister, Yang. The reunion instantly brightening up her mood, she cheerfully turned to her sister and yelled out, "Yang!" happily before spreading her arms out affectionately, ready to share a hug with her sister, a gesture which Yang happily reciprocated in turn.

However, before either girl could fully enjoy their reunion once again, another boisterous voice cut in. "Nora!" Belonging to none other than… Nora, as she presented herself enthusiastically between the two sisters with arms out wide as well, wishing to share in the joy of the moment as well, though said intrusion unintentionally ruined the tender moment before it even really had a chance to begin.

Off to the side, Pyrrha still continued to run, trying to lose the ever-present Deathstalker which relentlessly chased after her.

"Did she just run all the way here with a Deathstalker on her tail?" Blake asked in a deadpan tone, her arms crossed over one another in front of her as she looked at the other three beside her. With Nora being her ever cheerful self, Yang rapidly losing control of her already fiery temper as she shook silently in barely contained anger, and Ruby who continued to look on worriedly at the mentioned chase in the distance, not quite sure what to do to help at the moment.

Finally, Yang's temper finally erupted, literally in this case, creating a small, fiery shockwave that blasted out around her while her irises turned from their normal lilac color to their furious red in the process. Then, anger marking her every word, she then irritably yelled out, "I can't take it anymore! Can everyone just chill out for two seconds before something crazy happens again?!"

Silence followed the statement as a figurative timer ticked away for a couple moments as nothing happened in particular, other than Ren tiredly making his' way between Blake and Nora as he caught his' breath, causing Nora to softly cheer out in glee at his' arrival. Thus, these few silent moments allowed Yang's temperament to level out into a more tranquil mood once again. Unfortunately, the peace wouldn't last as Ruby gently patted her sister's arm to get her attention before simply saying, "Yang…" as she pointed up into the air to a point of interest, one both Blake and she had been gazing at in these couple moments of tranquility between them all, in turn causing Yang to hunch over in emphatic fatigue from the sheer amount of haphazardness of the situation along with the idea that things were certainly not going to settle down any time soon.

In the skies above the ruins, a girl in white flew through the air. Though, this was not because of her own volition, but simply because she found herself in the deathly grip of a 'Nevermore'-a type of bird-like Grimm, and while most of these types of Grimm are barely larger than their avian brethren in the skies, this one in particular was _much_ larger than normal, due in no small part thanks to its vast experience dealing with numerous humans and other huntsmen for years, if not decades, up until this point and, quite simply, this girl was just another tally to be added to its score-board.

"How could you leave me?!" She said aloud to nobody in particular, though referring to her departed partner, Ruby. The statement was soon followed by the deep and shrill cry of the Nevermore, the sound openly rippling out across the quiet forest around them.

Down below, Ruby merely said, "I said jump." in response to the airborne girl's statement, continuing to look at her teammate in peril, not quite sure how she or anyone else was going to get her down, safely that is.

On the other side of the line the group consisted of as they gazed at the spectacle, Blake spoke up. "She's gonna fall." She said in a predictive tone as she crossed her arms, awaiting said prediction as if it was nothing short of a certainty.

Not taking her eyes off the sight for a moment, Ruby responded. "She'll be fine." She said in a half-confident voice, one which carried a subtle undercurrent of worry with it.

Her concern soon grew exponentially as a sudden glint in the air caught her attention, as well as everyone else's, before it promptly impacted and pierced through the thick skin of the beast's claw which held the girl, causing it to jerk abruptly from the impact, the beast crying out in a pain from the sudden action as well, before its grip went limp, causing the young heiress to finally be freed from the creature's grip at long last, but, perhaps that wasn't a good thing at the moment.

"She's falling." Ren noted stoically, gazing at the sudden change in events as curiously, if in a slightly more subdued fashion, as everyone else.

At the same time, Jaune Arc finally released himself from the mess of tree branches that had once-acted as his' prison and now stood atop the large branch Ruby had previously landed and jumped from. As he stood there, ready to cast off to the others below, he too caught sight of the descending girl above. Unlike the others, however, he decided to take a little preemptive action on his' part to save the young damsel in distress, ready to sweep this heiress off her feet and 'melt her frozen heart', so to speak. So, unhesitatingly, and perhaps a bit foolhardily, he leapt off his' branched platform and into the air, directly in the girl's path.

Soaring through the air for but a brief instance, arms outstretched all the while, Jaune gently caught Weiss before her descent could take her any farther, holding her gently in a bridal carry of sorts.

"Just dropping in?" Jaune said suavely, giving her a smooth grin as Weiss turned to meet his' gaze once she realized her immediate risk of danger was stopped, seemingly by this boy whose grip she now found herself in. Though, as she finally caught sight of the boy she realized that the danger that she had previously been in was still quite real as she noticed that the both of them were still not anchored to the ground or any other solid platform by any means, causing a panicked look to cross over her face at the realization. Noticing her grave look as she looked around them, Jaune's eyes quickly flicked about as he reexamined his' situation before a look of comprehension too crossed his' face as he recognized his' one moment of grandeuristic heroism was but a short-sighted exploit that too left him vulnerable to the forces of gravity as well.

"Oh God." Jaune said helplessly, the brief phrase causing the both of them to curl up to one another in fright, both of them seemingly unaware or indifferent to the other's actions, as gravity's effects finally caught up with them at long last, Jaune crying out dreadfully as a result, bringing the both of them back down to reality and, soon enough, the ground.

Moments passed as Jaune awaited the painful feeling that came with the impact of colliding into the ground at somewhat high speeds and clenched his eyes tightly in anticipation. As the currents of air continued to flow around him in his' short descent, his' body finally jerked as he finally made contact with something solid, though his' body was in significantly less pain than he anticipated, mostly being centered around the area of his' abdomen and chest as well as some of his' joints which experienced a slight 'whiplash' effect from being jolted/jarred by the sudden deceleration his' body experienced. Groaning as a dull pain started to throb along his' body, Jaune slowly opened his' eyes only to meet the slight blurry sight of green grass below. Looking at it for a moment longer, his' mind finally caught up to the idea that this wasn't something he was supposed to be seeing at the moment, or at least not in this way anyway. As he looked at the ground below him, his' eyes scrunched up as he wondered why this situation wasn't adding up in his mind until a sudden glimpse in his' peripheral vision caught his' attention. At the bottom portion of his' field of vision he could make out the shine of the back of a metal boot as it stuck out from under the cover of a stark-white cloak, one which seemed remarkable familiar to him.

Finally, realization struck him as he realized that the reason why his' brain was telling him what he was seeing wasn't quite correct was simply because instead of being _on_ the ground he was still _above_ it. While he certainly had not achieved the gift of levitation like some had perhaps discovered, he still defied the full grasp of gravity by not technically being in contact with the ground, because instead of making contact with solid earth itself, he met the condensed structure of cloth stretch upon and over armor which was fitted over the modest form of the body beneath it.

He finally realized that he had roughly landed gut-first on the slightly padded shoulder of his' friend, Gabriel, who had caught him just before he could land on the ground, ultimately softening his' impact, if only slightly more than the unforgiving ground itself.

Blinking away some of the tears which accompanied the throb of pain resulting from the impact, he suddenly felt the vibrations as another weighted object made contact with the other side of his' friend's body, the sudden action causing his' body to shift slightly closer to the center, towards the head, of his' friend as the armored individual shifted to compensate for the added weight of both people. The sound of clacking became prominent in the distance, causing him to turn his' head slightly to the left to see his' partner, Pyrrha, as she continued to evade the Deathstalker's grasps and attacks at her, the sight causing his' body to go rigid in fear for his' teammate. Though, before he could make any move to extradite himself from his' friend's shoulder he noticed two things: One, his' friend lightly kept a grip on his' (Jaune's) lower back, keeping him from going wayward and sliding off and onto the ground below. And two, a voice suddenly spoke up from beside him, interrupting him before he could make any thoughts, protests or requests known aloud.

"Glad you two could drop in." A masculine voice said, automatically identifying it as Gabriel's rather than that of the seemingly dazed Weiss who sat still for a few moments after the slight fall with Jaune. After a few moments, Weiss realized whose grip she now found herself in-being in an awkward half-bridal, one-armed-carry of the caped crusader, Gabriel. More annoyed than anything that she kept winding up in these less than favorable situations, Weiss could only comment with one thing:

"Oh, my Hero." She said, twirling a finger in the air unenthusiastically, emphasizing the current mood she was in.

Seeing that Weiss was relatively unscathed, and as chipper of a mood as she probably was ever going to be, Gabriel wordlessly set her down, causing the heiress to daintily step onto the ground at last, though a bit unsteadily due to the previous series of events-from flying, then falling and, finally, landing. Meanwhile, Jaune finally spoke up.

"Um, not that I'm ungrateful or anything Gabriel, thanks for the catch by the way, but could you, Uh, set me down, please?" Jaune asked, jostling a bit from his' position as he turned to try to face his' friend, or as well as he could from his' less than graceful position, anyway.

"Oh. Yeah, sure." Gabriel said, pausing for a moment as he hunched over to let Jaune back down, unfortunately, Jaune couldn't quite stick the landing from his' previously prone position on his' friend's shoulder and turned and fell, landing on his' face, his' pride hurt more than anything from the short fall. Groaning a bit from the pain of his' cheek smacking into the ground, Jaune slowly raised himself back up, brushing the grass and dirt off of his' pants, shirt, face and hair as he finally stood back up on his' own two feet once again.

"Sorry 'bout that Jaune." Gabriel apologized sincerely, his' posture easily displaying the regret and shame he felt for carelessly allowing his' friend to get hurt after having just saved him.

"Oh, don't worry about it. I'm kind of getting used to this stuff anyway." Jaune said placatingly as he turned to face his' friend, waving a hand dismissively at the notion, already putting the incident behind him and moving on.

It was then that the cursory chase which was happening in the background finally happened along the general vicinity of the group as the beauty and beast (no relation to the folk-story-turned-Disney movie) rounded along the edge of the clearing, dirt and dust trailing along in their wake. Though, this was soon brought to an abrupt close as the creature surprisingly landed an attack upon the Greek-themed warrior, happening due in no small part to a sizeable amount of luck on the Grimm's part along with the factor of the fatigue which now seemed to be catching up to the famed female-warrior. It was here that the Deathstalker dramatically lifted up one of its large claws, light glinting slightly off the dulled armor of the beast's carapace, and swiftly brought it down upon the sprinting girl, unforgivingly striking her on her back and launching her some distance away across the field, right into the waiting arms (figuratively) of her friends, allies and lone 'admirer', Weiss; The abrupt and unforgiving move launching Pyrrha high into the air before descending, impacting and skidding slightly along the ground with a rather audible 'Smack'; beside her, the rest of the trainees looked on nonplussed at her as she finally met up with them at long last.

Walking steadily until he stood across from the group, gathering some of those in attendance's attention, more notably causing Yang and Ruby's expressions to brighten as they spotted their friend, Gabriel stopped as he neared the prone form of Pyrrha Nikos.

Squatting down beside the young woman, Gabriel spoke up. "You okay there, Pyrrha?" He said as he looked her over for any obvious signs of injury or ailment, but for the most part seeing that her aura left her mostly intact as well as healing whatever superficial wounds may have been left by the blunt attack of the Grimm.

Moaning in discomfort from both the impact of the attack and the landing, Pyrrha slightly turned over from her settled position on her side to face the cloaked person over her left shoulder. "Yes, I'll be fine. Thank you." She murmured out politely before she turned back around to face the ground, allowing her to begin getting back up onto her feet. As she started lifting herself up off the ground, she noted that he too had gotten up from his' crouched position and stood before her, offering her an armored hand as he silently stood before her. Noticing the offered gesture, she quietly accepted the hand, clasping it in her own and giving him a small smile and a quiet "Thank you." in appreciation. Once she stood back up, they both released their grasps from one another and gave each other a short nod in acknowledgement of the other's actions.

"Great, the gang's all here. Now we can all die together!" Yang said sardonically from beside them, gaining their attention as they, and some of the others beside her, turned to her at the statement.

Turning to address her sister, Ruby rebutted the statement. "Not if I can help it." A proclamation which was promptly followed by her yelling out as she charged forward towards the scrambling beast headed for them.

Seeing the abrupt action, Yang futilely raised a hand up and yelled out, "Ruby! Wait!", though, as she would soon come to see, her words were of no use as Ruby simply seemed to ignore them. Beside Yang, the group looked on at the departing girl and her actions, concern etched into each of their beings in varying degrees.

As the group looked on at the occurrence, some of them were already starting to turn to each other to discuss their next course of action as well as Ruby's sudden course of action. And, at the moment, one pair of partners in particular was already starting to talk about certain recent events.

Finally having a moment to talk with Pyrrha since their little tangle with the Deathstalker in the cave, Jaune quickly jogged up to his' partner before speaking up.

"Pyrrha! Are you okay? It looked like you took a pretty big hit and that landing didn't look so good either." Jaune asked as he stopped less than a foot away from her and looked her over for injury, concern making itself quite evident in every facet of his' being, whether it was through his' face or in the subtle lining of his' posture.

Taking her attention off the spectacle of Ruby Rose facing off against the Deathstalker which had relentlessly been pursuing her and Jaune, Pyrrha turned to look at Jaune before giving him a grateful smile for his' concern over her well-being before responding back to him. "Yes, I'm quite fine, Jaune. I'm stronger than I look you know." She said, and despite the words she used, there wasn't an ounce of arrogance to be found anywhere in her tone, showing that she held a great amount of humility in both her character as well as in her capabilities as a fighter.

Quickly looking her over, Jaune seemed to take her words to heart as he ceased his' brief examination of her form before he made eye contact with her once again as he conceded to her conciliatory words. "Yeah, alright, Pyrrha. Just making sure that you were okay, that's all." He paused momentarily before continuing in a slightly more downcast tone. "I don't know what I would have done if you got hurt. I mean, this whole thing with the Deathstalker was my fault and if I only hadn't touched that stupid stinger in the first place none of this would have happened!" Jaune ranted, throwing his' hands up in exasperation. Soon after, he brought both his' hands up to his' face before slouching slightly and groaning into his' hands.

Seeing Jaune's self-deprecating behavior, Pyrrha could only smile sadly at him before she raised an arm up and placed it on his' shoulder, cutting off his' groans of disappointment as he looked up into the gentle, green eyes of Pyrrha.

"Jaune, this wasn't your fault. You can't blame yourself for what happened, there was no way you could have known that the glowing crystal was part of a Deathstalker instead of a relic. We all came into this test blind, so you shouldn't blame yourself for what happened. None of us are perfect, Jaune. Not even me." Pyrrha said, her words trailing off and quieting at the end of the statement, all the while giving him a calm and patient look filled with nothing but the ever present compassion she seemed to hold for everyone, especially Jaune in particular.

Seeing the truth in her words and the authenticity in her eyes, Jaune couldn't help but believe her, and though he had now stopped blaming himself for causing this whole incident, he couldn't help but chastise himself mentally for not seeing this truth earlier, and he couldn't help but be grateful for Pyrrha for pointing that out to him.

"Yeah, you're right, Pyrrha. It means a lot to hear you say that, thanks." Jaune said gratefully, giving her a quick nod before straightening out from his' dour posture, visibly showing his' improved mood on the situation at hand.

In turn, Pyrrha gave him a simple yet proud smile, happy to see that she was able to perk up Jaune's disposition. And if one looked closely, one could see a slight blush adorn her countenance at his' words of gratitude, causing her too look meaningfully away from him to avoid him catching that small detail.

Meanwhile, another pair of trainees interacted with one another, these two in particular on less amiable terms than the previous duo.

"So, you're just going to let Ruby face that thing all by herself?" A voice said neutrally as to not give their preference to whichever answer the questioned would give, in turn causing the intended recipient to turn their head abruptly behind them, causing their white hair to whip out slightly at the sudden action.

Stepping up until he stood beside her, Gabriel Van Helsing looked on ahead of them intently at the departing red girl, crossing both arms over one other while not quite turning to face the recipient of the question as he quietly stood there, patiently awaiting the girl's response.

Taken aback by the question, Weiss visibly flinched, though whether it was either in surprise or from the implications behind the question were yet to be proven, and took a moment to muster her response before firing back at him, figuratively… hopefully.

"Well, she's the one who wanted to go off and play hero! She didn't have to go out on her own or anything, she should've just stayed here so that we all could have worked out a plan before trying to get out of here." Weiss commented angrily, huffing in displeasure as she looked on at the situation now developing in the distance with Ruby.

Undeterred by the disgruntled tone which she chose to use, Gabriel continued. "And you're just fine with letting her deal with it by herself? She _is_ your partner, isn't she?" He said as he finally turned to look at her since the conversation began, casting a brief glance in her direction as he tilted his' head slightly before once again turning to face the precarious situation developing with Ruby.

Looking at the same sight, Weiss visibly flinched as she saw the Grimm slam a claw into Ruby, knocking the young girl over briefly before she got back up. In misdirected anger, Weiss fully turned to face the questioner and angrily retorted, "You see that she's getting hurt, why don't _you_ do something then if you're so concerned about her?!"

Taking the barbed response in stride, Gabriel turned to look at Weiss and gave her a rather calm stare, one that almost seemed icy if it were to be another degree colder. "If I fight all these battles for her, then she, nor anyone else, would get any stronger on their own, and I couldn't do that to her. Besides, _I'm_ not the one who'll get in trouble if Ruby fails this test, you're the one that's always supposed to have her back when no one else does, even if you don't like her that much to begin with. Isn't overcoming these differences and working together past them the real point of this test? And if nothing else, you might at least be a good example for her to follow." He explained coolly, keeping eye contact with the Ice-princess all the while.

Maintaining eye contact for a few long, terse moments longer, she found it was futile to argue against him as she understood that he did have a fair point(s) in all of this and turned her gaze away from him and pouted silently, which was followed with a small, distasteful harrumph. After mentally arguing with herself for a few, short moments, she silently decided to concede to his' request and unsheathed Myrtenaster from its holster and wordlessly broke away from the rest of the group and rushed forward to help Ruby, trailing along behind Yang before she activated the weapon's functions along with her own specialized talents, thus allowing her to quickly speed through the clearing. In the process of doing so, she passed Yang who had already run headlong into the fray to help her sister but was now entrapped within a cage of large feathers thrown by the Nevermore, and to her partner, Ruby, who was moments away from fatal injury. Luckily enough, Weiss' timely intervention prevented the attack from connecting, the move stuck cold in its tracks, literally.

Seeing this happen, Gabriel couldn't help but grin at this course of action Weiss took and nodded appreciatively to himself, glad he could help push things along with Weiss and Ruby's partnership, or as much as one could do considering the lack of cooperation between the two. However, any further thoughts on that issue were promptly put on hold as a disturbance in the distance quickly caught his' attention, and with the way things were going the situation was only going to go from bad, to worse, to FUBAR if he didn't do anything about it soon. However, there were also other, more immediate, concerns to worry about at the moment. In this instance, it was the large, black, bird-raptor thing gliding in the air…

Moments passed as he watched the large creature circle around in the sky before he caught something at the edge of his' vision, luckily for him it was just Weiss, Ruby and Yang returning back to the group, and if the confident grin that Ruby was sporting was any indication, things with Weiss seemed to have mended over for the time being and hopefully things would now be going over smoothly between them now that the danger in the area was now at an all-time-high. It was at this time that Ruby noticed her friend and gave him an exuberant wave as she returned back to the group with her two allies, Gabriel giving her a small wave and nod in return as he motioned her over to join everyone.

Once everyone was back together again, Jaune made known his' own opinion on the situation.

"Guys," He said, looking up at the large beast before turning back to address everyone. "That thing's circling back." He emphasized the point by, well, pointing at the Grimm in the sky. "What are we going to do?" He asked nervously.

Seeing Jaune's reluctance and uncertainty about the situation, Weiss quickly interjected as Jaune finished his' statement. "Look, there's no sense in dilly-dallying. Our objective is right in front of us." She said plainly, with no small amount of impatience laced within her tone, as she gazed at the objects in question, causing Jaune and the others to briefly glimpse over at the ruins and the pedestals within.

"She's right." Ruby acknowledged before throwing a thumb over her shoulder. "Our mission is to grab an artifact and make it back to the cliffs." She said informatively, dropping her hand as she made her point clear to all those around her.

Nearby, Weiss gave a small smile, acknowledging that her partner was finally starting to shape up, for once showing some sense of capability in this situation; rather than just acting like the small child she figured she would have to drag around for these next few years at the academy.

'Perhaps there may be hope for improvement yet.' Weiss subtly thought to herself before quickly turning her attention back to the discussion at hand.

Gaining a much more serious visage as she looked to those around her, the others listening in intently as she continued to make her point clear, Ruby expanded upon her point of reasoning. "There's no point in fighting these things."

After gazing at her for a couple of moments, bouncing around the general idea in his' head for a couple moments as he let the idea settle in his' mind, Jaune spoke up. "Run and live. That is an idea I can get behind." Jaune agreed, puffing his' chest up confidently at the statement. The others around him also gave their own nods and grins of approval, supporting this course of action near-unanimously. However, the reason the word 'near' was added to the previous statement wasn't because of any dissent in any of those particular individuals, but because of a single outlier in particular, one who sought to give their own feedback on the general plan formed by the two; three if you include Weiss' acknowledgement initially.

Shaking his' head to himself, Gabriel walked up, brushing past Pyrrha slightly as he made his' way forward, until he stood at the center of the group where Ruby and Jaune were, causing everyone to look at him curiously as he caught their attention. Once he stood before everyone, he looked up at the two pseudo-leaders before glancing around to everyone else around him before making his' own opinion on the situation known to all those present.

"While that plan sounds good and all, how do you think you all are going to be getting out of here? I mean, you saw how the Nevermore single-handedly trapped both Ruby and Yang in one move, right? Then there was the whole thing with the Deathstalker chasing our dear friend, Pyrrha, around the whole damn clearing! Pyrrha, the girl who may very well be the most athletic and capable person in our entire class, was chased and nearly caught by that very same Grimm that almost finished off Ruby a minute ago if it weren't for Weiss. If _they_ weren't able to outrun the two Grimm, what chance do we have of all being able to escape unscathed?" He paused momentarily as he sighed, bringing a hand up to his' forehead in exasperation before he continued. "Look, I'm not saying any of you aren't or can't be just as capable as anyone else. What I am saying is this: I don't think we should risk ourselves on the idea of being able to just try and outrun these things. I mean, you've seen what they can do so far, do you really think they'll just let us all run out of here without a fight?" Gabriel rationalized to all those around him, at some point bringing his' arms out in front of him as he tried to reason with his' fellow students. A few moments of terse silence passed before he lowered his' arms as he settled down somewhat, regaining his' composition as he awaited everyone else's response. Some of the other students shifted uneasily in their spots at the statement, now not quite as confident that their plan would go off without a hitch unless they had some way to protect themselves as they got away.

As everyone was lost in their thoughts at the moment, this one particular voice pierced the veil of silence that pervaded the area around them, the intrusive sound quickly gaining the attention of all those present.

"So then what's _your_ plan hot-shot? Do you think you have a better idea?" The voice of Weiss spat out irritably, said girl waving a hand forth as if waiting for him to give her a response before she leaned back and simply left that same hand on her waist. Just by looking at her posture, Gabriel knew that Weiss' patience was running seriously low at the moment.

As the others quickly shifted their attention from Weiss at her outburst back to the addressed individual, Gabriel decided not to take any more of their precious time than he needed to and quickly presented his' view on the discussion. "You know you won't be able to get out of here without having to fight these things, you know?" He asked rhetorically, looking at them all briefly before continuing. "You're going to need an opening to get out of here if you want to be able to finish the test and get out of here as quickly as possible."

"Just get on with it already!" Weiss huffed out angrily, a noticeable tick mark quickly making its way onto her forehead at the statement.

Sighing to himself at Weiss' demanding statement, Gabriel took a moment to collect his' thoughts as he brought forth his' main proposal to the others in the group, the others besides Weiss, and the impatient part of Yang, patiently awaiting his' response.

"You're going to need someone to act as a distraction to keep the Grimm occupied while you all get away. I volunteer." He stated simply, making the task seem as if it were nothing more than a tiresome chore to be done on an average Monday morning.

Hearing the statement, the others looked at each other unsurely, not quite certain that he would be able to be up to such a task without suffering a terrible fate, not unless he had some help or was an incredibly capable individual indeed. Amongst the mix of confusion, a lone, familiar, individual was lost in their own flurry of thoughts, trepidation quickly seeping into their mind as thoughts of their friend meeting the same horrible fate another valued individual in their life had met so very long ago. Soon enough, these fears expanded to the point where the person themself couldn't keep their thoughts silent any longer. So, quickened with a desperate haste, the individual spoke up and made their concern known to the person in question.

"Are you crazy?! You can't fight these things on your own, they'll kill you!" Ruby said desperately, hoping that maybe she might've misheard or misunderstood what he wanted to do. "There's no way you're going to be able to do this all on your own! We'll help you!" She said, quickly volunteering herself and Weiss as she gathered her partner in a swift one-armed grip and brought her forward, Weiss giving off an indignant, "Hey!", in response to unwillingly being volunteered for something she didn't care to do.

Seeing the action, Gabriel quickly interposed before anyone else could volunteer themselves or each other for the task. "Look, it's all going to be alright, Ruby." He said, bringing his' arms forward in a placating motion. "There's alot about what I can do that you don't know." He said, taking the last few steps necessary until he stood just before Ruby and looked down slightly at her. From where she was standing, Ruby had to look up to meet his' gaze, given that he was a bit taller than she was, though her gaze didn't waver in the slightest despite this slight advantage he held over her.

Regardless, he continued on with his' intentions and swiftly brought his' hand up. Seeing the motioned limb, Ruby gazed it at curiously before it moved forward towards her, and forgetting her conviction to which she held herself in at the moment, Ruby quickly shut her eyes as his' hand reached just in front her eyes. A few moments passed silently before she jerked suddenly as she felt his' hand make contact with the top of her head, causing her to hesitantly open her eyes to the world once again to see that he had left his' hand on the top of her noggin. Gazing back at him wonderingly, she looked back to his' hooded face only to barely be able to see a relaxed grin making itself present on his' face, the light of the afternoon sun making the bottom of his' face visible just enough for her to see it at the moment.

Chuckling lightly at the innocent look she was giving him, he continued. "I'll be fine, little Red. But I need you to make sure everyone gets out of here safely. Think you can do that for me?" He asked politely, ruffling her hair slightly at the first statement, the action causing Ruby to squirm slightly before he stopped and took his' arm away from her and left it at his' side.

Though, as Ruby recounted the request in her head, she still persisted with her concern over her friend. "But what about you? You're one of my friends too you know! Who's going to make sure you get out of here if we're all out of the test, huh? What if we're not allowed to come back and help you?!" She said, voicing aloud her worry to him, causing Weiss and some of the others nearby to shy away at the mere intensity of the compassion and volume she held in her tone.

In response he tilted his' head slightly to the left playfully before responding back to her with the same smile as before and said, "Well, if you're really so worried, Ruby, how about this, then?" He said, once again reaching an arm forward, though this time however, he simply brought it forward until it stopped just before Ruby, causing the young girl to look at it then back at him questioningly before looking back at the proffered hand again. It was here that he curled the rest of his' fingers into his' hand, making a fist except for one lone finger, the pinky, which he kept extended out towards her. Seeing the unspoken question upon her face, he elaborated on this peculiar course of action. "I'm going to make you a promise. A promise that I'll get through this test, these Grimm and anything else between me and my goal of becoming a hero; I'm going to see you all on the other side of it all, no matter what. You have my word, Ruby." He stated calmly but assuredly, bringing his' hand a little closer to her so that she could reach it without straining herself.

Looking back and forth between him and the offered hand, she slowly brought her own hand forth and mirrored his' gesture before bringing it just up to his' hand. Though, just before she brought her finger to curl around his' own she paused and looked back up to him pleadingly, glistening eyes looking back up at shadowed ones desperately as she softly spoke to him to confirm this with him one last time, "Promise?".

In response, he gave her an affirmative nod and responded to her with an utterly sincere, "Promise.", in return.

Taking a few moments to scrutinize the vestiges of his' expression to see if she could spot any inauthenticity in his' person and was happy to note that there wasn't a single trace of it to be found in her brief examination of his' being and quickly turned her hand around and brought both of their singled-out digits together, binding them both to this promise in this moment of time, space and fate for the universe to judge. However, Ruby dismissed, and was utterly ignorant to, such magnitude and simply held the same childlike innocence she always carried herself with and simply offered him a beaming smile, her whole demeanor calming down and brightening immensely with this one gesture of trust and assurance between them both.

"Aww, that's sooooooo cute!" A boisterous voice said off to the side exuberantly, causing the both of them to break apart from the amiable moment they shared as they both looked to see who had spoken up, only to see that it was none other than Yang, which in hindsight seemed like the obvious conclusion to come to considering the nature of the response.

Jogging up until she was right beside Ruby, Yang indelicately brought Ruby into a tight sisterly hug, causing said inadvertent victim to groan uncomfortably as she was smothered by her sister's affectionate gesture before she was released from the death-like grip, wobbling slightly due to the slight jarring effect Yang's hug had on her. As she set her sister down, Yang quickly added:

"Well, now that that's all settled out, are we done here or—" However, her response was swiftly cut off as another different, much louder, sound of something smashing its way into the clearing they were all in rumbled throughout the area, causing all those in attendance to turn towards the sudden calamitous intrusion.

In the wooded area across from them, numerous trees were either uprooted and launched dozens of feet (meters) away from their previous spots or simply and violently brushed aside as this beast of power made itself known to anyone and everyone around it. And as everyone gazed at the happening, the color drained from their skin as they finally recognized what had now come for them, all except for an intrepid few who stood firmly against the new presence as it now crashed its way into the open expanse of the clearing they were all in, its mere presence demanding utter fear and reverence from those around it, man and Grimm alike. And as it slowly came to stand across all of them from its point of entrance, they could all, without a doubt, see what it was that had come to claim their lives at last.

As the beast toppled and trampled down the last of the trees and shrubbery in its path, some of its immediate features came into focus. The first thing that they all noticed was its immense size, the creature's height alone dwarfed the trees and other shrubbery around it, the top of it reaching up to measure what had to have been over a dozen stories in size at the very least! Next was the ever-present feature all Grimm seemed to share, regardless of species: their pitch-black skin/hide tone which encompassed its entire body, and if it weren't for the other detailed features that existed along its body the creature would've been an utter nightmare to face at night. The beast as well carried along several sets of limbs, where it had two large pairs of legs, making it a quadruped, a pair of large ears that extended far past the edges of the width of its body and a small, almost non-existent, black tail which acted as nothing more than a complementary decoration to accentuate its bestial status. Then, there were the far more ostentatious and terrifying features of the beast, outside of its actual size. Carrying itself with a demeanor of age and power, the beast itself toted along physical manifestations which portrayed these traits perfectly, consisting of: a bone-white mask which all Grimm seemed to share, this one marked with dull red markings that detailed and accentuated the beast's primal heritage as well as providing an illustration of what the beast's face would have been like had it been another creature which provided this beast's inspiration in a world beyond this one. Below this mask was another terrifying feature indeed, which was in fact a pair of outrageously large ivory tusks which curved to a point dozens of feet away from its face; and if one had to guess, the sheer durability of these two tusks would have surely been tougher than any known man-made metal or alloy. Lastly, the Grimm had a large nasal trunk which ran down the lower height of its body until it nearly reached the ground, hanging there neutrally as the Grimm breathed in and out almost non-existentially, though it was fairly certain that if the creature were to ever face off against something that it considered a threat, such a feature could be used, in conjuncture with its nigh-unbreakable tusks, with terrifying power to shatter any foe or obstacle.

Oh, and it also had a pair of piercing, red eyes, one of which had a long, smooth-lined scar along its bone-mask which ran from above and _to_ the eye-the eye itself seeming to be able to burrow deep into one's very soul and character, as well as a row of bony white protrusions that went down the length of its spine, but those latter features were really only superficial concerns all things considered.

In truth, this was the elephantine-Grimm known as the Goliath, and not a single person had a single idea as to how or why it would be here at all, merely for the likes of them. Though, as they all continued to gaze at it in their frozen positions, they took note that as it stared forward with its unchanging cold, lifeless red eyes, its gaze never once wavered away from one spot. And as they all turned to look at where it was looking they realized that this one spot was being held by one individual in particular, this person being none other than their comrade and friend, Gabriel Van Helsing, who himself continued to unwaveringly gaze back into the dead eyes of the Apex Grimm, both arms crossed over one another all the while.

Looking back and forth between the exchange between the two apparent figures of power in this area, Yang quickly, and not-so-subtly, marched herself to the closer, and more reasonable, of the two and roughly gripped him by the front of his' armor and shook him angrily, giving him a smoldering, in this case literally, gaze with her own set of red eyes, though these ones were far more intense than any other in the vicinity.

Shaking him in an exasperatedly rough manner until she felt she had truly gotten his' attention, Yang gave him one last forceful shake before uttering aloud, "What in the world did you do?!" in an utterly furious and no-nonsense tone. Fortuitously enough, in her dangerous mood as her hair blazed furiously around her, Yang was able to fully see into the usually veiled visage of Gabriel, though in her currently intense mood she honestly couldn't have cared less about this small detail as she instead impatiently waited for his' response, feeling that the length of time for his' response was taking entirely too long, despite the fact that it had only been a moment and a half since she asked the question.

Ducking his' head down slightly as he sighed, he looked back up to Yang and met her temperamental gaze with a calm one of his' own as he answered her question as well as the unspoken ones of everyone else as they shifted their gazes from the large beast in the distance back towards their interrogated ally.

"Well, this is how it all started …"

* * *

 **(Flashback, Sometime after the events of The 'Black' Trailer)**

It was nighttime, heavy rain clouds filled the area with a ceaseless cascade of water droplets, each of which impacted harshly against the muddied ground below it without cause and without reason other than to follow the laws of physics of the world around it. Moonlight was scattered throughout the area as it broke through uneven cracks in the coverage the rainclouds had over the local skies, thus providing some resemblance of illumination in this darkened world. Lightning crashed to the ground randomly, shattering the otherwise calm cacophony of sounds of water impacting earth, fires that would've started from these strikes were extinguished almost instantaneously in this weather due to the very phenomenon which brought about its conception, such was the course in this almost supernatural, yet quite natural, phenomenon we call 'weather'.

And as another bolt of lightning struck against a particularly unfortunate boulder, the brief flash of light exuded from this action revealed the dampened form of a familiar figure indeed as he, in this instance, rather than enjoy the serenity of this natural phenomenon, instead provided brief flashes of light of his' own as he fired bullet after bullet from his' rifle, each one ending the wretched existence of one Grimm after another.

"Come on, get out of here! Go, go, go!" He yelled out desperately, looking down the glistening scope of his' weapon as he fired once, twice, and many more times as waves of Beowolves continued to enclose all around him.

Behind him, numerous families, friends and familiars all scrambled to escape the slowly crumbling infrastructure of a freeway transport system, which had been struck by an unfortunately placed lightning strike on one of its support columns which weakened and shattered due to the stress its own weight placed on it, causing others in its immediate vicinity to give out as well. Fortunately, the road itself was actually located around 50 feet (approximately 15 meters) above ground level and surrounded with a reinforced metal fence which covered the top of the road, keeping most types of aerial Grimm at bay as well as avoiding the clutches of ground-based Grimm altogether.

Gabriel had stumbled upon this incident on his' way to one of the larger cities in Vale, getting directions from a helpful young lad working one of the dust mines at one of the larger quarries in the area, before he coincidentally passed by the man-made structure as it was struck and the screams of terror and chaos ensued.

Luckily, in the initial incidence nobody had been hurt by the strike or its immediate consequences and thus were redirected to the other side of the road by the airborne warrior where it was much more stable, yet fairly more congested since there was now only a single lane for each direction of traffic, while the proper authorities were called in to block off the road until it could be safely reconstructed. But, until then, present passers-on-by needed to be evacuated off the busy route towards safety and, hopefully, their destinations.

Though, that wasn't where the trouble ended, as the Grimm too had caught sight of the occurrence, as well as catching a whiff of the prevailing fear from the travelers and made their way to the damaged highway to wreak havoc, post-haste. After directing traffic into the proper channels, Gabriel took notice of the impending forces of the Grimm, and seeing where this was going to go unless he took action, decided to take the proactive course: Protect the people and eliminate any and all Grimm that stood in their way.

Thus, we find our hero, firing off desperately at the looming threat of dozens upon dozens of approaching Grimm on both sides of the freeway, utilizing both the abilities of time-manipulation and hastened mobility through flight. And for a time, it seemed the tide could be turned in his' favor, as long as he kept up the pressure against the seemingly unending forces of the Grimm until the trekkers could make their way clear of the area; interestingly enough, the Grimm seemed to be focusing all their attention solely on the damaged part of the route, rather than chasing after the fleeing citizens or attack on any other undamaged part of the road, perhaps their inbred instinct and rage blinded their tactful intuition or perhaps there was another reason the beasts sought to eliminate this hunter of their kind? Whatever the reason may be, things were going well so far for the hero…

But, that's when things always deteriorate to the worst possible situation, isn't it?

Unbeknownst to anyone else, somewhere not too far away from this catastrophe, a herd/line of Goliaths lumbered on through the land, awaiting a time until their dark master would call upon them to be used for their dark and nefarious reasons, but you didn't hear that from me.

It was during this uneventful trek that a particularly nasty bolt of lightning cast itself down from the heavens, though whether it was due to natural phenomena or divine intervention was impossible to determine, and curiously placed itself upon path of one of the dozens of lumbering behemoths. While it didn't particularly impact or seriously damage the beast, only achieving a glancing blow from the act, it still caused a great deal amount of radiating pain and agony to shoot through its body, but only because the lightning strike glanced down along the face and over the eye of the creature, leaving a shallow, smoking trench along the upper part of the creature's mask above and to the eye, leaving behind a blinding pain.

In its discombobulated state, the great beast broke away from the group and, despite the desperate calls/roars of its brethren to return, left in a seemingly random direction to hopefully find some way to ease this horrid pain as well as find some way to vent off its steadily growing rage, not having felt a pain like this in some odd years because of its otherwise idle and nomadic behavior. However, its current course would not take it to the sanctuary it so desperately sought, but rather, a crossroad leading into calamity.

Sometime after the initial assault by the vast forces of the Grimm, their numbers had eventually thinned to the point that whatever constitution of a terrifying horde that they once were was now nothing more than a waning nuisance for those in the area, and as things were finally coming to a close, it seemed that this night would finally achieve harmony at last, outside of the prevailing sounds of thunder and flashes of lightning anyway. However, a new sound and sensation made itself known to the lone warrior, who hovered silently with the use of his' glowing ethereal wings as he locked his' sights on his' target before he finished off the last of the remaining creatures with a resounding boom, the sudden loud action causing some of those passing along on the road behind him to momentarily stare in awe at what appeared to be a 'divine' warrior before remembering the perilous situation they were all in and making their way to safety. It was after some time that Gabriel finally caught sight of the source of the rumbling sensation, watching and feeling as it approached rapidly as it kicked up massive amounts of mud, water and greenery. All the while, lightning strikes in the distance illuminated the profile of the beast, casting it half in light and half in darkness for moments at a time as it approached the man-made structure.

Through its red haze of rage, the Goliath could only cognitively identify two things: One, the large concrete/metal structure that was the raised freeway. And two, the hovering form of a cloaked man in brilliant, silver armor. Seeing these two obstacles blocking its path, the Grimm sought nothing more than to trample on through the blockade and its sole guardian to reach its fantastical sanctuary and hastened its pace as it approached, tensing itself to smash quickly and mercilessly through the freeway.

Watching as the large beast approached, Gabriel picked up on its course of action and knew that the only thing standing between utter calamity and sanctuary for these people was him, and if he didn't do something soon the chances that this would come out in their favor would diminish into nothing. So, seeing no other course of action, Gabriel flew forward at a breakneck pace towards this seemingly unstoppable beast, but if life has taught him anything, it's that he was able to achieve even the impossible.

So, as he flew towards what many would consider his' imminent doom, he put away his' sniper rifle, Teddy, knowing that its effects alone would be negligible and pulled out the second most powerful item in his' arsenal, his' ivory-white guitar, Jasmine. Once his' hands were free, he summoned his' enchanted item of harmonics from its dimensional plane of residence and gripped it in his' arms, slinging the, well, sling over his' head and across his' back and chest, securing it to his' body as he gathered his' hands on the instrument, one on the frets of the guitar while the other handled the strings. Once it was in his' hand, he needed some way to slow down the beast, and at the moment he didn't have the time to waste with summoning one of his' more powerful solos, seeing as the beast would approach the guarded structure at any moment. So, with practiced ease and calm serenity, Gabriel slowed his' roll and simply hovered in the air for a moment, finally deciding he was close enough to his' target to enact his' plan. Adjusting his' hands and fingers to their respective positions, Gabriel plucked one string after another, playing a rather ambiguous set of notes from the instrument, though it would not be without use. As he did this, bolts of lightning were cast from the heavens above, one for each note played by him on the guitar, and each aimed directly at the Goliath ahead.

As the beast rushed headlong into the fray, prepared to cast away the heavy barrier blocking its path, a rather specific set of sounds reached its large ears, despite the muffling effect the storm had on the area, each in a pitch and tone it was unfamiliar with despite it cycling through its vast knowledge gained throughout its centuries of existence in this world. However, before it could think any further, its mental, as well as some physical, faculties were disrupted as searing pain erupted all along its back before arcing into its body. As each bolt of lightning came crashing down from its heightened point of origin towards the thickened hide of the creature, a dull roar of thunder followed behind it an instance later, creating an echoing cacophony along with the strikes of arcing electricity scattering across and into the beast's body, the beast responding with either pained spasms or sporadic, guttural roars, each series of events all following one after another.

As the cascade of electricity continued its onslaught, though the beast stumbled and slowed, the attacks themselves were not enough to bring the Goliath down, due in no small part to the Grimm's great size as well as the bone segments along its spine which acted as a poor conduit to electricity and thus impeded some of its effects, however minutely. So, despite the few spasms and jolts of pain from the onslaught, the beast ultimately stayed on-course, though at a significantly slowed pace. And as the moments superseded one another, Gabriel finally started to feel the effects the electrical attacks were having on his' guitar, as with each passing note played upon the mystical instrument, the effects of each attack caused a thermal feedback that steadily built up the longer it was used until finally the guitar itself started to redden visibly from the heat, sizzling the rainwater which dripped onto it and creating small puffs of steam in the air. Meanwhile, its handler's hands were already starting to blister from the developing heat, and though the rain seemed to help _Jasmine_ keep cool, it wasn't nearly enough as his' attacks barely seemed to hinder the Goliath, let alone defeat it as he had hoped.

And as all hope seemed to be lost for this course of action to save these people, Gabriel prepared to activate one of his' trump cards in order to stop the beast once and for all before any harm could be done to them. But, it was then that a small sound rang out, one which was barely noticeable to him, despite the rain and thunder which dampened his' reception to external sounds. Turning around to find the source of the sound, Gabriel came upon the sight of an emptied transport system, its final rover giving off a final, familiar sound, a simple car horn- the same sound he had just heard, as it sped off into the distance at a reasonable pace, more than likely keeping in mind the still-present danger that came with a rainy-day road.

So, as the vehicle and its personnel faded into the distance, Gabriel's task was realized at last but the road itself was only a background concern for him now; structures could be rebuilt, but lives themselves are irreplaceable. Still though, there was no reason for him to further risk the integrity of this road any longer, and thus, he decided to eliminate the risk of damage to this structure entirely and went along with the simple idea of diverting the beast far, far away from this highway and into another area where he could find a way to properly dispose of it. And so, with that course of action in mind, he de-summoned _Jasmine_ back into its stored dimension and brought both hands into the inside of his' coat before retrieving a pair of gleaming, silver Desert Eagle handguns. With them in hand, and quickly checking to see if they were loaded, Gabriel aimed down the sights of both respective weapons and let off a barrage of high-caliber, armor-piercing shots at the beast, intent on gathering its attention.

As the lumbering beast carried on, it noticed the distinctly unfavorable searing pain from the blasts of lightning which had been barraging it had finally ceased, leaving it in a furious haze as it went to look for the one responsible for such agony, knowing that it had to be by nothing more than the sole individual it had seen this night, the man in white. And so, seeing as how the attacks stopped, the Goliath turned to look into the air for the troubling man only to see that instead of the glistening white tool that he had seemingly been using to hurt it, it had in its stead equipped a pair of smaller, yet still shining, weapons, pistols if its experience with dealing with foolhardy humans over the years was any indication. With its rapt attention on the being, the Grimm continued with a frenzied haste to its newly acquired target, and as expected, the human aimed its tools of destruction at it and fired at the most obvious area all humans were so fond of targeting, its head. Though, that wouldn't do much good for the small creature, obviously because of the thick, ivory-like mask which protected its skull for far longer than the human had even existed. Though, as this line of thought went through the beast's head, so too did another object.

As Gabriel took the time to aim at the beast, he knew full well that without altering the components of his' bullets, his' shots would never gain the beast's full attention, let alone harm it. So, giving it his' all whilst trying to remain calm, Gabriel fired shot after shot from his' weapon's eight round magazine, each shot being fired a moment after another as each shot was compensated from the one prior until finally he got the result he wanted. Watching as the Apex Grimm recoiled visibly as his' shot fired true and hit dead center through the eye socket of the boned mask and entered the damaged eye of the creature, Gabriel grinned as the Goliath settled back into place before halting its pace entirely as it fumed and glared hatefully at him; yeah, this thing was well and truly pissed now, just like he wanted. So, quickly dumping the empty cartridges to the ground far below him and loading in a pair of full ones to take their place, Gabriel primed the weapons before quickly taking off into the sky above the beast and away from the bridge, far enough to be out of reach of the beast's grip and close enough to keep within its line of sight and interest.

Seeing its fleeing foe, the beast, in its instinctual and angered mindset, chased along blindly behind its despicable quarry, leaving any other semblance of thought behind as it sought to reduce this lowly creature to paste and bringing whatever essence was left back to its master to be used to create more of its kin to continue destroying their eternal enemies, Humanity… and Faunus as well, I suppose.

However, far, far away in a more peaceful part of the area, the last departing vehicle quietly made its way along, carrying along its precious cargo to their designated terminus, home; and after the events of today, it was a much welcome thought they, the family, all shared. However, while the two elder figures in the front of the vehicle chose to enjoy the calm serenity of this moment, there was a younger, more impressionable mind at work as they looked back over the car seat, through the rear window and into the distance behind them, where the slightest glimmer of a certain airborne warrior was seen soaring into the distance before disappearing, followed hastily by a larger black form in the distance as it swung along huge arcs of debris that blocked its path as it gave chase before too disappearing in the hazy, misty horizon. All the while, the child could only gasp in astonishment from it all, having seen some of the warrior's actions during the family's escape along the damaged highway, before silently facing forward again in their seat after several moments of inactivity. Then, after several moments, the child spoke up:

"Mommy, who was that?" The child asked curiously, gripping a small, brown teddy bear in their small arms.

At the statement, the mother quickly glanced to the side from her spot in the passenger seat to look at her driving husband, only to get an even shorter glance and unsure shrug from her husband before he turned back to his' task, careful to keep a wary eye out for any other dangers on this already eventful trip. Seeing this action, the mother could only sigh uncertainly at her husband's unhelpful response before slowly turning back to look at her child and responding at last with, "Well, sweetheart, that was a hero." She said broadly, hoping this answer would sate the child's curiosity at the moment.

Tilting their head to the side cutely, the child again inquired to their parent, "What's a hero, mommy?" they asked innocently, looking back at their mother with a curious, imploring look in their eyes as they awaited an answer.

"Well," the mother said, brushing along some stray hairs which gathered along her brow and tucked them back into place before continuing, ", a hero is a very brave person. One who fights to protect people like us against evil, even when no one else will." She said slowly, making sure her child was keeping up with the meaning of her explanation.

Nodding ever so slightly at their mother's explanation on a hero essentially was, the child got a sudden idea, one that they felt could help make it easier to understand what a hero was like. "Umm, so they're like an angel, like the ones from the stories you tell me at bed time?"

"The very same, sweetheart." The mother clarified.

"Yeah! So, it's like the story where angels rose from the ashes of the world and used the power of Dust to create light to fight against the Grimm, right Mommy?" The child reasoned, tilting their head down slightly towards the ground but kept their eyes fixed on their parent all the while, creating a rather shy look that also conveyed a quality of unmatched cuteness at the same time.

Amused by her child's correlation, the mother acknowledged the idea with a motherly grin before once again speaking to the child in a soft tone, "Exactly, sweetheart. Just like the angels in the story." The mother affirmed, nodding her head slightly at the statement. Meanwhile, the father chuckled at the term his' wife and child used for their savior amusedly but said nothing otherwise, intent on see his' family the rest of the way home safely without pause or distraction. Well, except for maybe a potty break for their child, but that issue could be put off until it actually became a problem.

"Now," The mother continued. "I think we've all had enough excitement for one day. So, how about we rest up and I'll make us some of my famous Egg and Cheese quiche with bacon and pancakes for breakfast tomorrow?" The mother offered, mostly to the child but also peripherally to her husband, in which he simply gave an expectant nod and brief glance to her before turning back to the road. The child, meanwhile, was much more enthusiastic in their response as they shook in barely contained excitement for a few brief seconds before letting out an excited "Yeah!", their reaction causing the mother to chuckle lightly to herself whilst also bringing a hand up to her chin delicately as she laughed, a dainty habit she had more than likely developed over her life no doubt. And so, with the two people most important in her life in agreement at her offer, she continued. "Then it's settled. But, for now, I think it's best that we all get some rest until we get home, alright?" She questioned, though it was fairly certain this was more of a command than anything, if the expectant yet stern look she was giving her child was any indication. Seeing this, the child meekly gave their mother a rapid series of nods in affirmative, not wanting to face the ungodly wrath of their mother, as they went to lay down on the backseat, placating their mother's concerns as she gave them a wide grin before turning around fully to face the front of the vehicle alongside her husband, patiently waiting for their arrival back home.

Behind the two of them, the child giggled happily to themselves as they thought back onto the topic from earlier, giddy from getting the point behind what a hero was actually like. It was then that the child thought to themselves:

'Someday, when I grow up to be big and strong and smart, I want to be a hero just like him. And maybe I can be someone else's guardian angel someday!' They thought excitedly before once again chuckling and grinning madly at their newfound goal in life, snuggling into their dear, stuffed bear all the while as they finally closed their eyes to rest…

Once again, we come back upon the sight of our dear hero, Gabriel, as he flies through the stormy skies of Vale as he looked for a place to get rid of the Grimm and after looking around wildly through the haze of rain in his' vision, he spotted something in the distance, something which looked very promising indeed. Turning around to gauge his' distance with the Goliath he was glad to note that it was still in hot pursuit of him and quickly flew off into his' desired direction, intent on ending this quickly and effortlessly.

Eventually, he came upon a rather barren land filled with the sparse amounts of dying trees and black earth. Knowing what this type of area held for anyone below, Gabriel slowed his' pace until he hovered above a particularly interesting looking spot and waited for the large Grimm to show up, and from what he saw in the distance, he wouldn't have to wait long.

Approaching at a breakneck pace, the Goliath disregarded any and all obstacles in its path, intent on reaching and destroying the lone human which had caused it so much grief since the short amount of time they've known each other. And, as it rushed headlong to meet the human for what it considered to be a great slaughter, the beast noticed that just as it was about to reach the human its mobility was hampered, or more specifically its legs in general. Glancing down, it could not believe the level of ignorance it showed in evaluating its surroundings, because as it stood now, it was now stuck in a very, VERY large pit of sticky, black tar and quickly found it was quite difficult to rid itself from the grip of this environmental hazard.

Seeing the Grimm fall into such a plain trap, Gabriel couldn't help but shake his' head disappointingly before looking down at the Grimm with an obvious look of pity. Unexpectedly, however, instead of the look going on entirely unheeded or admired, the Grimm instead noticed the observing human and saw his' pitying expression and struggled with renewed zeal and blistering fury as it tried to get out of these pits of tar to destroy this human as urgently as possible. It was at this time that Gabriel landed down on the ground near the edge of the pit, unsummoning the wings from his' back as he landed, where he would be close enough to carry out the final act against the creature if need be yet far enough away from the Grimm to elude any surprise retaliations it might have sent his' way.

Sighing tiredly from this course of action, Gabriel was about to reach back for his' signature weapon, _The Crescent Eclipse,_ but stopped as he heard a familiar old chime, the Westminster Grandfather-clock chime to be precise, come from the inside of his' cloak. Remembering that it could only come from one item in particular on his' person, and only for urgent matters at that, he promptly reached his' hand inside to fish out the item and took a glimpse at the holographically displayed appointment it showed, and considering both the nature of the arrangement as well as the amount of time left between then and now, he was going to be in quite a pickle if he didn't leave for it soon.

"Shit! I was supposed to be in Vale (the city) by now!" Looking back from his' pocket-watch as he tucked it away again in his' coat, Gabriel gazed at the great creature imprisoned below as it struggled to get out of the pitch black tar pit, sinking further within its confines with each failed effort to escape. Weighing his' options, between the idea to stay and face the beast for however long it took until it was properly destroyed and risk being late to such a crucial occasion or simply leave it to its already assured fate and leave now while he still had time. And as the moments passed by around him, nature carrying on ceaselessly around them all the while, he made his' choice at last. "Looks like I'm gonna have to be cutting this meeting short. You deserved far better than… _this_." He said almost glumly, waving a hand towards the dragging, black cesspool below them before looking back at the great Grimm meaningfully, making sure he had its full attention as it could only futilely bellow back at him angrily in its unintelligible, elephantine tongue as it sank further and further still. Then, as moments passed until finally the only thing left atop the quaking pool of minerals was the Grimm's head, he said his' last piece to the creature:

"… For all your knowledge, all the time that you had, you're still just as susceptible to bounds of the world as I am…" As he finished, the large Grimm had finally succumbed to the unyielding force of this tarry, black pit at last. Though, as the very last bit of the Goliath started to sink, with its lone remaining eye left above the surface, the Grimm sent him a look so cold, so furious, so… promising of pain, anguish and misery to him and all that he held dear. The look was so potent in fact that it, in a sense, kept the Crusader rooted in his' spot, unable to look away from the creature as stress, unease, and anxiety all grew within him at that one look alone, but fear itself was not amongst those emotions felt. No, fear was a tool of the enemy and he wasn't going to let it rule him, not again, not by this foe or any other. So, mustering up his' stoic tenacity, he closed his' eyes for a moment as he let out a stressed sigh and took in a calming breath to stay his' nerves before once again opening his' sight to the world and looked at the great beast once again, courage teeming through his' very being. Crossing his' arms, Gabriel looked on as the creature still gave him that single, unwavering look despite its situation, uncaring of its position as it sought fit to deliver its last message of hatred to this pathetic human-being until finally… darkness engulfed its sight along with the rest of it, leaving no proof to the world that it had ever been there at all.

So, with the issue of the Goliath gone and dealt with, it was finally time to leave at last. And thus, Gabriel, still clasping his' pocket-watch, activated the device, along with its abilities, and shimmered away through the droplets of rain that cascaded all throughout the land before his' image faded entirely with the rain, leaving nothing but the echo of rain, lightning and thunder to occupy the area.

However, moments after the lone human's departure, from atop the surface of the asphalt quarry, several things happened: _One_ , through the murky opacity of the sticky mineral deposit, a faint, red glow radiated out from under the surface, its source seemingly unknown. This continued for several moments until the glow faded away entirely, leaving the area in silence. _Two_ , in this moment of stillness in the aftermath of this event, a constant stream of large air-pockets floated to the surface before popping once they reached air, the fumes they released relatively trivial in terms of chemical make-up. This, like the other event, continued on for several moments before they too stopped all together, leaving the area in relatively calm silence, aside from the storm which continued to ceaselessly create a cascade of cacophony of chaotic noises that could only come from weather such as this. _Then_ , quite suddenly, the edges as well as the rest of the liquid that made up the pit of tar began to recede in on itself as, somehow, the liquid was being displaced into another place, one deeper than the area it had previously been residing in, and again, this lasted for several agonizing minutes as the liquid futilely tried to cling onto the edges of the earth that made up its boundaries, but to no avail as gravity itself emerged victorious in its struggle against friction and adhesion. And by the end of it all, the tar was nowhere to be seen, having disappeared somewhere far below the surface of remnant to some unknown cavity.

 _Lastly_ , through the vast emptiness left behind in the wake of the departing tar, there was movement, it was slow but it was moving. Moments later, a large pillar-like appendage crested over the cusp of the hole, blackened from its captivity in this once-horrid entrapment. Then, another three limbs followed after the first, dragging along the rest of a large, dangerous blackened body with them.

And in the wake of it all, an elephantine roar thundered out over the land, causing even raindrops to quake in their transient free-fall. This was neither a call of pain nor a call of fury.

No, this was a call to war. A war between two immense powers of this realm, the likes of which the world had not yet seen.

Indeed, this would be a terrible, beautiful war…

* * *

 **(Flashback-Concluded)**

 **A/N: Welp, that's that. First off, I am so, so sorry for taking so long to update the story! D: Honestly, I'm ashamed it took me this long to update. A month and a half… I just- I don't even know where to even begin! Yes, I know. It wasn't a very long gap of time in the grand scheme of things, but considering I updated nearly once a week, that's a bloody, f #$ing wait! Though, I'm certain not many of you care about the wait and probably won't once the next chapter and the one after that and so on and so forth, so I'll just let this all go and get down to the rest of the Post-script. Well first off, or second off technically, there wasn't the battle some of you were looking forward to seeing in this chapter; I'm sorry for that. The chapter turned out to be much larger than I wanted it to be, or expected, and I had to divide the chapter into two parts, and I wasn't going to call it something, something part 1, that'd be silly! So, I just made this its own chapter, though it really is just more of an extraordinarily long build-up than anything. But, the battle should be coming up in the next chapter, as well as a lot of other elements of the story, so here's hoping I can pull that off well enough for you all.**

 **Before I leave off getting back to working on this, and life in general, I just wanted to say this: Thank you. Thank you so very, very much for getting this story to over a thousand views already, I- I'm just absolutely blown away by that! I never thought this story would get that popular, and in so many countries no less! I appreciate every single one of you who takes the time to read, enjoy or at least think on this story. Thank you all for your time and have a nice day or night wherever you are. Until next time, this is The Brutal Legend, signing off and logging out…**


	10. The Battle of Davids and Goliaths

**Disclaimer: I do not and WILL not own the rights to own or affect the characters or settings or direction of the actual RWBY property. (Unless they contact me for such purposes, but even then I wouldn't feel capable of giving any more particular insight on Monty's dream. It was his dream-baby and I only wish he could have lived to see it through…) Anyway, on to a more positive note! This story and its own unique elements are mine and mine alone to own and if anyone has any problems with that, then they are more than welcome to let me know why in a PM or some such medium. So, with that, let's all: '** _Keep moving forward._ **'**

 **A/N: The first half of the chapter is mostly just dialogue. So, just for reference, the battle itself will be nearly around halfway through or so, so keep an eye out for that.**

* * *

"I sometimes wonder if the changes I've made, or will make, were worth it. That what I do to save the few here and now may result in the unexpected endangerment of the many elsewhere in the future. I don't know… but, I like to think that it all means something; that the consequences of all that I do may be rectified in due time."-G.V.H.

* * *

 **(Present, Location-Emerald Forest)**

Silence…

An ever pervasive phenomenon, one which we have come to familiarize ourselves with time and time again, whether it was indirectly through our studies as we took the time to focus on whatever subject we tasked ourselves in trying to understand or directly through creating a serene environment to better develop and understand our very selves, such as in the case of meditation. Though, that begs the question as to why now of all times, in a forest filled with varying, contrasting personalities would such a state be able to exist at all? Well, there are several explanations as to how such a state could be achieved, each just as curious or mundane as any other:

One: spiritual peace/meditation, but that option was out of the way since most of those present did not meet the criteria to reach such a state; except for Lie Ren perhaps, but even he was as inexperienced in that field of practice as much as anyone else was, really.

Two: Death, but that option too was out of the question since most, if not all, of those present still drew breath and could feel their hearts pounding in their chests from all that the events leading up to this moment.

And, the last obvious answer is simply this: Pondering, a moment in which one wonders over a given set of circumstances, whether it's observed information, visual or auditory (or other sensory) input or just plain stupefaction as one simply tries to deal with the here and now.

In this case, it seemed like the latter seemed to be the more plausible compared to the rest. Because, here we find our fellowship as they all stand around in each of their own varying states of perplexity and reflection after hearing of an accounting of events just moments prior.

Blake, at the moment, was deep in thought, her hand propped up under her chin in a contemplative pose of sorts, more or less just bouncing around ideas and theories on several things at the moment. All the while, an occasional twitch from the bow atop her head would make itself known for but a moment before stopping just as suddenly as it appeared, thankfully for Blake nobody seemed to notice.

Weiss herself was pacing back and forth quietly in her own little spot, wondering what they were going to do now that not only was there a gigantic creature in front of them blocking their way forward, but that it may very well attempt to crush them on its course to claim the life of their troublesome ally; at the moment, she was in a mix between angry, perturbed, clueless, wondering, planning, ranting and even partially skeptical, mostly in due part to the idea that there was no way someone like this nobody could have trapped and escaped from such a massive and apparently experienced creature like this; one of the thoughts she had in particular being, 'There's no way any of that was true. No way, no how.' Though, even she had to admit that the story _could_ hold some merit somehow, since there was literally living, standing proof of such an encounter standing in front of them all; far away, thankfully, at least for the moment.

Ruby, in the meantime, had a serious look on her face as she looked down at the ground slightly, thinking about several things ranging from: fear for her friend's lives as well as her own, trepidation for the route they would have to take to fight through and around this new threat and finally admiration for her friend, Gabriel, for facing what was paramount to an unstoppable force amongst Grimm and coming out on the other side of the encounter in one piece. Oh, and she was kind of hungry too, milk and cookies sounded really nice right about now…

Next, there was Jaune who, in comparison to everyone else, was in a fairly despondent mood at the moment as he sat crouched on the ground with his head in his' hands, groaning. This was attributed to his train of thought leading him to wish he had never got out of bed this morning had he known what he was going to be dealing with today.

Pyrrha, meanwhile, stood beside Jaune as she left a hand on Jaune's shoulder comfortingly, hunched over beside him as she murmured words of encouragement to try to cheer him up and make him realize that moping around here wasn't going to solve anything and so on and so forth; honestly, she'd kind of have her work cut out for her, but she cared too much about him just to let something like this get him, or anyone else for that matter, down for good. So, she'd keep trying until she finally broke through to him.

Ren, like Blake, was deep in thought, observing the three large threats encircling and standing idle in the distance around them as he both wondered what the Grimm were waiting on, rather than immediately striking at them at this moment, as well as pondering over a certain, nagging feeling that he couldn't quite place which was buzzing around in the back of his mind before soon realizing it was his mind's way of telling him that Nora had been far too quiet for far too long, which undoubtedly meant that trouble would quickly ensue considering the nature of his' childhood friend. Understandably, this line of thought was already leading him into a reserved panic as he looked for the now-absent Nora.

The girl in question, rather than worrying about consequential thoughts and issues as well as figuring that bigger, better minds would be better suited to ponder on this type of issue, took this time to skip around in a nearby part of the clearing, opposite of the direction of the idle Grimm, trying to catch a randomly wandering butterfly that found itself separated from the rest. Then, just as she pounced on the lone, roving insect and cupped it in her hands, laughing in glee as she did so, a sudden "Nora!" from her dearest friend, Ren, broke her concentration enough to where her hands unclasped themselves from one another and allowed her quarry to escape from, quite literally, right between her fingers, causing her to huff audibly and pout at the failed attempt to capture it. Standing up, she quickly turned around and headed back to the group, none the wiser to the possible danger she could have found herself in had the Grimm decided to chase after her during her brief expedition.

The reason, not that anyone participating in the initiation would know, for this being simply that while the Goliath silently stewed within its own sense of wrath the more reasonable sections of its mind still reminded the rest that even as powerful as it was, against a fully armed group of hunters, while lacking in experience more than made up for it with both energy and numbers, it would more than certainly not survive the encounter. Knowing that the odds weren't in its favor, it understood that if it wanted to make sure it accomplished its own personal vendetta, it'd have to wait until the right opportunity presented itself-for sooner or later its target would have to separate from the rest, eventually; As for the Nevermore and Deathstalker, at the appearance of one of the more revered members of their species, they had chosen to act as figurative wingmen and under an unspoken order from their leader would only act once the other minor, non-essential humanoids diverged from the Goliath's objective. Otherwise, if enough time passed and their patience could no longer stay them, they would simply work to create such an opportunity for their superior brethren to act upon while they dealt with those that remained.

And lastly, there was the ever-fiery Yang, who, after a few moments of silence as she digested all that was told to her and everyone else, reinforced this bountiful quality of character as she, in all her blazing glory, tightened her incredible grip on the man's clothed armor and shouted right in his face.

"Do you know what you've done?! You've risked all of our lives because you didn't make sure this big, stupid thing was dead!"

"How was I supposed to know it would find a way out?! It was a damned tar pit! There wasn't even anything around for it to use to free itself! Besides, I was in a hurry! I couldn't just wait around for an hour just to make sure it was dead, I had things to do!" He responded, giving her a frustrated glare, one which she not-so-subtly returned.

"Well, it doesn't really matter now, does it? It found us, and the only reason it's even here is because of you! It followed you here somehow and now you're risking both my sister's life as well as those of everyone here!" At this, she gave him a forceful shove, disgusted by the idea of even being anywhere near him. So much so that she was just an inch away from smashing his face in with a combustive punch from _Ember Cilica_.

"I didn't expect for this to happen! How could I?" He paused to let out a frustrated breath, trying to calm himself down as he continued in a much more sober demeanor. "Look, I'm sorry. Maybe you're right. Maybe I should have been a bit more proactive and found a way to destroy it or something. But, I didn't. And now I'm going to have to be the one who's going to be paying for it, Yang."

"It's not just you, Gabriel! We're all here too! What about us?!"

"Don't worry, Yang. I know what I need to do." He said with quiet reluctance and an audibly resigned sigh.

"Wait, wha-?" Yang tried to ask, though her inquiry was interrupted by Gabriel shouting out to the group, gathering all of their attention in the process, even Jaune's after his period of self-deprivation had come to an end, uplifted thanks in no small part to Pyrrha's patient efforts.

"Everyone, listen up! It looks like we're going to need a new plan."

"Well, we can figure that out, Genius!" Weiss bitterly interjected from her spot, though it was ignored for the most part as Gabriel continued speaking, seemingly unfazed by the remark.

"Because this big, giant Grimm has so decided to grace us with its presence, were are not going to be just walking out of here like we had first hoped!" He yelled out in a voice not unlike that of a drill sergeant, though because of his own peculiar vocal range, which wasn't quite as suited for the no-nonsense, supposedly angry tone implied by the stereotype, his voice was only 'slightly' underwhelming in its approach. Why he chose to use this particular way of speaking in the first place was anyone's guess, but it gathered everyone's attention well enough so he continued on.

"So, as we can all figure, we're all going to have to fight our way out of here! But, since there are now _three_ major threats in front of us, some more overwhelmingly powerful than the others, things are really starting to look bleak and it looks like I won't be able to occupy the attention of each and every one of them and I'll more than likely be needing all your help to do it instead! So, for the sake of simplicity, what I'm implying is that we're going to have to split up and draw each Grimm from the others so they can't work together and eliminate us all one by one. But, I suppose you all had a similar idea in mind, right?" He asked, almost rhetorically but figured it was worth asking, hoping the broad statement would bring about other ideas or scenarios he and the others could enact with their current predicament.

After hearing what he had to say, many of the others looked at each other apprehensively, thinking that while the plan didn't seem particularly unruly or daunting, the odds they'd be facing would surely show otherwise. And for a while most of them didn't say anything. Yet, surprisingly enough, Jaune of all people walked forward, gaining everyone's attention away from their own thoughts as they all turned to look at him until he stood a few feet away from Gabriel before stopping.

"Look man. I get what you're trying to say, but this whole thing is just crazy! I mean, _three_ giant Grimm? That's insane! We aren't meant to be ready for this, we're just kids! What do they expect us to do against these things?" Jaune asked, his whole person just radiating a miasma of worry and angst as he made his reservations known aloud to his comrade and friend.

"Jaune." Gabriel responded with an understanding look on his face. "I'm just as scared as you are about how this whole thing will play out. But if you or anyone else has any other ideas on what we should do, I'm all ears. But right now, I'm just trying to make sure we have a suitable plan of action for what we have to deal with right now, now that we've basically been blind-sided. I want to make sure we all get out of here safely and in one piece." Gabriel explained, waving a hand around emphatically at the point while he shifted most of his weight to one leg and leant back whilst crossing his arms.

"And I understand that. But I'm not sure if we're able to handle all this. I'm not even sure if these guys were even supposed to be a part of the test!"

"And so what if they weren't? They are now and we can't do anything to change that except deal with it. Well, unless you have some other, magical way for us to get out of this sticky situation that we've found ourselves in?"

At this statement, Jaune could only look down sheepishly, twiddling his thumbs together nervously as he readied himself to suggest this new idea he had in mind. "Well, I was just thinking that, uh…" He paused, hesitating for a few more moments as he tried to figure out the best way of letting Gabriel in on the idea that he had without making himself out to be a fool.

"Spit it out, Jaune." Gabriel said a bit more tersely than he would have liked as he tapped his foot on the ground impatiently, awaiting Jaune's answer.

"I- I, Uh... I was just going to suggest we all stay here! You know, wait this thing out until help arrives and maybe try again next time when things are a little less dangerous!" Jaune suggested nervously, looking down at the ground after giving his thoughts on the matter, not daring to look his friend in the eye lest he feel even more of a fool after giving his friend what he thought amounted to a cowardly plan.

Sighing to himself in self-deprecation, Jaune was broken from his downtrodden reverie once he felt a hand settle itself onto his shoulder. Looking at the settled limb, Jaune followed it towards its owner who, rather than having a look of condescendence shown towards him, gave him a look of understanding and brought his arm back towards himself once he was sure he had gotten Jaune's attention.

"I know you mean well, Jaune. And in any other circumstance that probably would be the best way to get everyone out of here safely." It was at this point Gabriel sighed to himself tiredly before continuing. "But, we can't count on help coming for us, or at least not any time soon."

"W-what makes you say that?" Jaune asked nervously, looking at his friend imploringly, wondering why his plan of caution wouldn't work out after all.

"Well, Ozpin did say that we would have to 'Destroy everything in your way, or you will die'." He said, using his hands to make quotation marks in the air before he brought his' arms back down to his' sides as he continued. "So, he probably expects us to make our own exit strategy simply by either fighting our way out… or die trying." Gabriel said plainly, looking at Jaune with a blank look on his face.

"Huh? Wait! There's no way they would actually let that happen to us, right? They're teachers! It's their job to make sure we're okay!" Jaune said frightfully, giving Gabriel a terrified look as he shook in place slightly, though whether it was from either fear or outrage was hard to say.

"No, their job is to make sure we learn something. And if that means they have to risk the occasional, unlucky student not returning from this initiation so that other _qualified_ pupils can continue to learn and grow, I believe they would resign themselves to be fully committed to that course of action." Gabriel explained in a no-nonsense tone. Though, if he was to be honest with himself, even he didn't like the answer he had given Jaune.

"But- But they can't do that! How could they think for even a second that they could get away with something like that?!" Jaune exclaimed in equal parts terror and frustration as he marched up until he stood face-to-face with his friend.

Inching just the slightest bit forward until he was nearly nose-to-nose with Jaune, Gabriel, despite how calm he seemed, slightly heatedly responded with:

"As much as nobody likes to admit it, we're at **War** , Jaune. They can't chance letting some incompetent fool get themselves and/or their team slaughtered because of a stupid mistake they made on the field. And as the instructors of one of the most esteemed academies in all of Remnant it's their job to make sure every single graduate from here is battle-tested and ready for the world ahead of them. This isn't a game, Jaune. Things like _this_ ," He motioned beside them beyond the cusp of the hill they were all hiding behind to the large Grimm in the distance before continuing on with his tirade. ", can happen at any moment, and there won't be _anyone_ to help us then! So, we have to learn here and _now…_ " He said, gesturing with a downward finger for dramatic emphasis. "…that the only things we have that we can truly depend on are ourselves and EACH. OTHER! Nothing else!" It was at this point after finishing the small speech just how flustered he had become about the subject, and figuring how serious he was about it, Gabriel too seemed to be as terrified about the whole situation as Jaune was, though apparently he had taken it all in stride as the details of the test were given and had dealt with the conclusions of it all on his own anyway.

Nearby, the other students who had found themselves eaves-dropping on the discussion shied away slightly at the realistic tone of it all, or at least some of them were. A few of the others in attendance had already reached the same conclusion and had already come to terms with it as well.

Letting out ragged breaths, once he had backed-up away from Jaune somewhat, Gabriel straightened himself up and relaxed his breathing and stature as he regained his calm composure and awaited Jaune's inevitable response, whatever it may be, vocal or otherwise.

Stunned by the barrage of blunt truths that assaulted him, Jaune could only stand there numbly as he looked at and beyond his friend to nothing in particular as thoughts jumbled themselves around in his head. Moments passed by silently between them before Jaune visibly sagged in place and shook his head, not out of denial but out of weary resignation. Then, he made his response known aloud at last.

"It makes sense…and I hate it. I really, really do… but, you did make a good point in all of this. It seems we can't just wait this thing out after all." He paused, sighing. "… alright, I guess we're doing things your way." As he finished the statement, Jaune looked up to meet the eyes of his friend, not with the fear and apprehension that had plagued him thus far, but rather with a look of resigned acceptance. Though, considering the stakes and what may be demanded of them in the next few minutes it could be understood why he was as weary about their chances as he was.

Chuckling slightly in both relief at and of Jaune's response, Gabriel let the warmth of camaraderie fill him at the moment as he gave the other guy a brief, weary smile and said, "Thanks for understanding, Jaune. I'm glad you were at least willing to hear me out on all this.", stepping up to the other male 'leader' of the group of young warriors and patting him good-naturedly on the arm, which in turn caused Jaune to rub his arm nervously and give a half-hearted chuckle afterwards.

"Yeah, yeah whatever. So, about that plan you had? Who's going with whom? 'Cause I don't want to be left hanging out to dry with that Deathstalker… again. Or at least not without Pyrrha or someone else to help me out again." Jaune said with no small amount of trepidation as he rubbed his arm nervously, looking to his friend tentatively for a comforting, thoughtful answer as to the situation they would be faced with.

"Well," Gabriel started off calmly, taking a cursory glance over everyone as he began. "Like I said before, we were going to have to split up into three separate groups, one for each Grimm if you couldn't tell. However, because of our asymmetrical numbering, we'd have to split off into groups of three-"

"Dibs on Ren and guitar-guy!" The voice of one Nora Valkyrie said as she bounced in her spot jubilantly amongst the ring of people that had formed since the two boys had started speaking while she had her arm raised, waving it for any and all to see and thus drawing everyone's attention for a few brief moments before their attention was once again gathered by the previously interrupted individual.

"-But doing so would mean the manpower for each individual group would be limited and a single less person to coordinate with could mean the difference between life and death; Which is why I am not going to be going with _that_ tactic."

"So, what did you have in mind, then?" Jaune asked uneasily, looking between each of the other members of the initiation before looking back to the other member of his' current conversation.

"Well, what I have is basically the same plan as before, except I'm not going to be able to do it alone anymore, not if you all want to get out of here safely." He paused, getting a few affirmative murmurs at the statement before continuing. "Which is why I'm going to have everyone instead split off into two groups, one group holding off the two Grimm while they escape to safety while the last group worries about dealing with the incredibly deadly Goliath."

"Alright, and how would one do that? It seems like a pretty big risk to just split us up like that instead of fighting together as a single unit. Wouldn't a united front normally result in a better overall defense for all involved?" Said the until-now previously silent voice of Blake Belladonna, whose point had gotten a few affirmative murmurs and slight nods of agreement from some of the others around her, though she wasn't looking for their approval, but simply just the acknowledgement from the man in the center of it all.

"And you'd be right in that line of thinking if that was all that there was to it. But, you didn't let me finish."

"Then by all means, please elaborate." She said, waving her hand with a small flourish in front of her as she awaited his' answer, perceptive yellow eyes peering beyond the veil of darkness of Gabriel's cowl masking his features and right into his dark-brown eyes, the action leaving him unnerved once he caught it. Though, before anyone could notice he calmed himself and went on to expand upon his previous statements and responded back to Blake.

"Sure thing. Like I was saying, if things get hairy and none of us can escape soundly, out of the nine of us, four of us need to go and face off against the Deathstalker while another four find a way to bring down the Nevermore in case it becomes a big enough problem for all of you. Now, I'm not sure who could best work together with one another so I'll be letting you all figure out who's going with whom for yourselves. But, while you all try to get back to the cliff, and hopefully to safety, I'll be dealing with the Goliath myself."

"Wait, hold on." The soft, feminine voice of one Ruby Rose said aloud, gathering Gabriel's attention as he turned around to look towards the source of the lone voice.

"Gabriel, I… I just want you to be safe. If going alone is what you think is best then I can't stop you. But please, _please_ , just be safe and come back to us as soon as this whole thing is over. Can you do that, for me?" She asked him, an imploring, worried look fixing itself on her face as she looked at him, awaiting his reply.

Seeing her expectant yet apprehensive expression, despite whatever uneasiness he may have felt about the situation at hand or forthcoming, he felt it'd be prudent to at least show some sense of confidence despite venturing out on a task that many would consider harrowing at best, before deciding upon a suitable answer to help alleviate her worries.

"Of course, Ruby. Anything for you. Besides, I made you a promise, remember?" He said, smiling at her gently before taking a brief step towards her to pat her upper arm, near her shoulder. "Now come on, we have a fight to win." And with that, he began to walk off, passing by both Yang and Weiss as he started to head in the direction of the nearby hill which shielded them from being in the direct sight of the circling Grimm; Meanwhile, everyone who heard his final remark decided that it was now as good a time as any to leave and thus everyone made to join in the trek to finally face the Grimm.

However, before they all went beyond the crest of the hill ahead of them and into the fray, Yang quickly laid a gauntleted hand on top of Ruby's shoulder, quickly halting the younger girl in her tracks as well as causing the other two members of their impromptu group, Weiss and Blake, to halt in their steps a few feet away while they waited for the two sisters to finish whatever business was keeping them.

"Soooo…" Yang said, drawing the word out while having an entirely too calm look on her face as she looked away from her sister before it quickly drifted back onto Ruby and morphed into a sly, devious grin as she once again spoke up to continue whatever point she wanted to bring up. "You sounded really concerned about him before, Sis; You must really care about him. You liiiike him, don't you?" Yang said with an all too innocent tone in her voice, though it was obvious from the look that she was giving Ruby that the question in itself implied much more than what could be seen from it at face value.

"What? Ewww, Yang! It's not like that! We're just friends! Really good friends." Though as she said this, her statement drifted off as she felt that although what she was saying was certainly true, somewhere deep down within herself a small voice was saying that perhaps what she felt for him was maybe just a little bit more than what she would consider as just an average friend, especially with how much concern and worry she seemed to show towards him in these last couple of conversations alone that she had with him.

"Oooohhh, that's all? Well, to me it looks like you-"

"Oh, come on! Is this really the time to be talking about this?!" Weiss interrupted, thankfully saving Ruby from having to answer any more potentially embarrassing questions for right now.

"She's right you know. I believe there are more important things we should be worrying about right now." Blake added as she calmly looked over briefly into the horizon where the Grimm gathered as they awaited their arrival.

"Ohhh, fine! You guys are no fun! Well, whatever. I guess it's time to go kick butt and take names!" And with that, she punched her fists together in excitement before rushing off into battle, her teammates following in her wake as soon as they noticed she set off. However, as soon as they all began to leave, Ruby turned to Weiss and made a hushed 'Pssst' to her, promptly gathering the Heiress' attention before she could, causing said girl to turn around as her partner began to speak.

"Hey, thanks for having my back, back there. I really appreciate it." She said genuinely, giving her teammate an appreciative smile as she did said this.

"Yeah, well, don't count on me helping you out again. Now isn't the time for gossip and I'd very much like to focus on staying alive right now, if you wouldn't mind." And with that, she cut off any further conversation with her by turning her focus ahead and nearly sprinting forward and catching up to the two other members of their group, leaving her partner to catch up to them.

"Sure thing, buddy!" Ruby yelled out from behind, getting a non-appreciative grunt from Weiss as she continued to move forward with the rest of the team while Ruby herself effortlessly caught up to them effortlessly with her own unique brand of speed, along with a brief use of her semblance, before soon enough passing them altogether and leading them all onward, the others wordlessly following along behind her.

Meanwhile, ahead of everyone else, Gabriel stood over the crest of the hill, watching along behind him towards the other groups which were rapidly approaching before soon enough they all caught up to him and slowed down as they too reached the top of the small hill they were on. It was here that they all got a clear glimpse of the various obstacles which stood before them in the distance; however, they also got a good glimpse of a bridged system of ruins nearby that would lead them to victory-and hopefully, safety.

So, with that, they all wordlessly raced towards the area in unison, the large Grimm following in their wake as they followed their seemingly inexperienced prey towards what they considered their impending doom.

Well, _almost_ all of them did…

* * *

 **(Point of Interest-Gabriel)**

While most of those gathered in the area advanced towards other, tactical locations to complete or impede the initiation, respectively, two individuals from each corresponding side of the conflict decided to stay behind at the hilled area that made up the clearing surrounding the ruins both sides had initially gathered at. Those two being Gabriel and the Goliath, both of whom found themselves standing not-so-far from one another as they stared at the other silently, neither one making the first move to act or attack as of this moment.

However, in this ensuing, silent stalemate, an unseen presence made itself known, not openly to the both of them but rather the one whose existence it had found itself bound to for some time…

" _My Dear…"_ A fairly mature yet distinctly feminine voice said from seemingly nowhere, nearly causing the cloaked man to jump in his' spot in surprise. Though, luckily for him, he kept himself calm, thus keeping the Goliath from reacting in turn and charging before he was ready, especially now that he had a sudden, unexpected guest to deal with.

Turning his' attention inwards, Gabriel thought aloud to the mysterious, yet all too familiar, spectral voice.

'Aetulia? I haven't heard from you since I got here. Where have you been?'

" _Still residing within you, biding my time equally between observing the world and resting and recuperating whatever essence of myself that I can. Ever since I have left my domain, my power has dissipated into an echo of what it once was; though, in reality, it was never very grand to begin with."_ The woman, now known as Aetulia, explained as she silently shifted within the confines of the man's mind, body and soul restlessly, an uneasiness which Gabriel could barely sense, despite her supposedly ethereal constitution.

'Oh, well, I hope you're going to be okay. So, what brings you to my attention at the moment, Aetulia?' He asked, all the while physically keeping a solid gaze at the enormous Goliath ahead while the rest of his' mind was focused on the conversation happening within.

" _I wished to provide some insight concerning an issue which has been plaguing your mind ever since your arrival in this world, especially since one of the grandest examples to help prove the point now stands before you. Well, us, I should say."_

'That being?' He asked with an almost impatient tone in his' voice, a detail which did not completely elude Aetulia though she allowed it to slide by just this once, considering the source of his' stress was now currently standing before him some distance off.

" _Simply put, the reason that this Grimm, as well as numerous others that may happen upon your vicinity, is be able to find, as well as retain its sole focus on, you at almost any distance… is all because of me…"_ She said in an almost ashamed tone, which coming from a kind, elegant soul such as hers came to a surprise to Gabriel, considering he felt that she would never do anything to which she would have to apologize for, and it unsettled, almost frightened, him.

'Wait, what? Why? How?' He asked in a terse manner, eager to know more about what she had to say about such a phenomenon which he had been peripherally noticing for some time.

" _Well, it is only a theory, but with each passing occurrence between you and the beasts it seems that my theory is becoming more and more certain. As you know, these creatures, these… Grimm, seem to be attracted to perceivable amounts of negative emotions, and perhaps energy, and follow them towards wherever their source may be with a terrible, ruthless zeal. You saw this during the siege along the transport route where you first encountered this beast, where those people's emotions permeated into an atmosphere which in itself acted as a beacon for these creatures. But, as we've seen, they have for the most part ignored them all in favor of you, of us. Due to these principles upon which these beings reside upon, they are bound to follow the strongest well of negative emotions they can find, which for the time being seems to be me as I may very well be the most significant source of such resonance within this realm, seeming as I am essentially the very embodiment of sorrow itself."_ She elaborated informatively, and if she could breathe, she would have more than likely have been winded by the end of her explanation.

Gabriel, meanwhile, was sobered by this forthcoming explanation. While it did provide an explanation as to the peculiar behavior expressed by the Grimm recently, it was all quite a lot to take in all at once. After a minute of silently stewing about within his own convoluted thoughts on the issue, he finally decided upon an answer to give to the fair, womanly spirit.

'Understood, Aetulia. Is there anything else you can tell me or that I should know? Anything at all?'

Hesitating for a few moments as she wondered if this next expression of worriment seemed too personal. But, deciding it would be best not to leave any concerns left unsaid she finally made her worried thoughts known to him, _"Just… please be careful, my dear. I can sense that the Colossus before you is very ancient and it may very well be the most dangerous threat to you in this world, aside from whatever, or whoever, created it."_

'I'll keep that in mind. Though, I'm sure that compared to what I've had to deal with in the past, this shouldn't be anything too dire. I'm certain that I'll be just fine." He responded coolly, his voice displaying a confidence that he himself perhaps only peripherally felt, for no one but a machine could really stand to be completely calm when staring down a creature that could flatten entire towns.

"… _Fine."_ She said with reluctant acceptance after a few moments pause. _"But, please don't do anything exceptionally foolhardy, if you could help it at least."_ She requested of him, especially since if anything were to happen to him, it would most certainly affect her as well; but, her own fate was really only a secondary concern to her now anyway, seeing as she was only just a spirit that lingered with him for some unforeseen purpose; she also might have just been a little bit fond of him as well; in a maidly/caretakerly sort of way. Though, she would never really admit that to anyone aloud other than him, though she might be reluctant to answer even him should he ever decide to ask.

'Hopefully I won't need to. But, I think I'll be just fine either way. Though, do please let me know if anything remarkable arises, alright?' He asked with an imaginary smile, which if it were to manifest into a corporeal form would most certainly be positively beaming..

" _Of course. Be safe, my dear. For now, though, I must still recuperate what energy I can if ever a time comes that you may need it. But, if you ever come to need my aid or consideration over anything, I'll be here."_

'Will do, Aetulia. And thank you, I really do appreciate your concern.' And now, as he felt her essence slowly recede back into the confines of his being he turned his thoughts from the internal exchange within himself and now focused fully on the world outside at last now that it was over. 'Now, where were we?'

At this, he took in the sight of the beast once again, who had all the while patiently stayed rooted at its spot at the end of its trodden path, and began to ponder which route of action to take against this grand and ancient foe. And realizing that, for the moment, it had chosen to fume idly in its place, perhaps too planning on what it wanted to do now that it had its own target in its sights as well, he felt that the best way to start off this inevitable conflict was not with power, but with precision and distance. Thus, he reached behind himself and under his cloak, feeling around until he felt the general roughness of something other than his' armor or his' other weapons and after feeling around a bit more he noticeably relaxed upon feeling and grasping the cold, metal frame of 'Teddy' before bringing it around and gripping it along its ergonomic handle and frame. Once it was in hand, he aimed along the highly-enhanced scope of the weapon and looked at the creature, which seemed particularly unfazed by this action, knowing full well of the degree of effectiveness, or lack thereof, that firearms seemed to have on it.

And so, seeing this already steady state of tense unconcern by the creature, Gabriel felt that it'd be best to fight it, not while it was focused and able to experience to use in the forthcoming battle, but instead face it while it was, for a lack of a better phrase, 'dumb and angry'. Therefore, a good place to start would be like with his last encounter with the Goliath-catching its attention by targeting a soft, vulnerable spot, and that scarred eye looked like as good a place as any to start. And thus, once he accounted for all the inevitable elements that would ultimately affect the accuracy of his shot, with his aim true and his mind resolved, he fired…

 **Boom!**

And away the shot went, until…

 **Wrrraaaaoooorrrr!**

The Goliath bellowed deeply, the noise almost shaking the air and area around it as its head rose up abruptly as the sharp pain of something impacting against its unprotected eye surged through its skull, reducing the already crippled vision in that eye and diminishing it to practically non-existent.

After that instinctual recoil, the creature looked back at the distant figure of the man, its lone remaining eye glowing all the brighter due to its building rage while its now disabled eye was left a jagged mess of black tissue, a small line of ebony liquid dripping down from the terrible mess of flesh like some unholy, demonic blood-water as it cascaded along the creature's ivory mask, creating a few new lines to add to the creature's already animalistic design as the trails of liquid split apart.

However, in this moment, the creature's thoughts went from moderate loathing into a cold fury. Its state of mind turning once-tactical contemplations into merely unrefined thoughts. It was in this state where it decided to itself that there would be no holding back, no further recoiling from such menial anguish, that nothing else would be felt other than the pathetic creature's warm life-blood flowing under its pillar-like feet as it towered over its fallen opponent. That and the cold fulfillment of erasing this lone, troublesome being from existence once and for all, following in line with the demand that all Grimm unerringly follow. Even it.

And with that, the Goliath let out another, less intense roar. Backing up onto its hind-legs once again before settling back down, shaking the ground noticeably as it did so, it charged towards the lone warrior, the red glow from its lone remaining eye leaving a small residual streak of light in its wake as it rushed at a break-neck pace that could only come from something as grand in size as the Goliath.

Back at his spot, Gabriel looked on at the rapidly encroaching form of the Goliath through his scope, and though such a sight would leave other Huntsmen, no matter how experienced they were, quaking in their spots, he stood strong, unyielding even in the face of what would have otherwise been certain death.

The other reason why he was so steadfast was because of the fact that in its current state, if he failed, the Goliath certainly wouldn't stop at just him, it would more than likely continue its onslaught against everyone here as well, having dealt with arguably the only one there that could stop it; and, even if everyone were to work together to bring it down, it would be more than likely that there would be at least _some_ casualties along the way; whether they were simply serious injuries or some far worse fate. And so, he knew he had to succeed, no matter the cost to himself or his potential future should he make a mistake at any point past this moment. He'd stop this thing, right here, right now. Or die trying…

"You and your kind sought my power, you will have it." Gabriel declared lowly in a placid manner, more to himself than anything, as he tucked away the rifle behind his back once again, seeing as it would more than likely be of no more use to him any longer today, and reached for the other detracted item along his back and brought it forward. Once the weapon was in hand, he grasped along the lever that ran along the side of the item and pulled it, extending it into its off-white, skeletal glory, thus revealing that it was indeed his' signature weapon, _The Crescent Eclipse_. And with but a flick of his hand, a small hum resonated through the air, the white, glowing blade of superheated energy that made up the blade of the weapon extending itself, reaching nearly a meter in length from the tip of its point to the slot it extended from; All the while, steam and gas wafted around the blade as it steamed and evaporated the very moisture in the air around it.

And with but a shimmer of his armor, Gabriel's ethereal wings were summoned along his back and instantly he flew off towards the Goliath, intent on meeting it half-way and giving it the clash it so desperately wanted.

And thus, the war between these two great powers began…

* * *

 **(Point of Interest-Ruby & Jaune's Groups)**

Minutes passed in which both impromptu teams of warriors traded blows, bullets and blasts against the strikes of the more powerful and durable Grimm, occasionally having to swap some members of their own respective, make-shift groups as this battle of initiation raged on.

Despite the initial inclusion of their newfound ally earlier in the test, the events of this battle remained relatively unchanged and the corresponding series of events leading to this forthcoming point were relatively intact. Thus, fate would once again bring us to this familiar, awe-inspiring moment in the history of Remnant and its heroes.

As Jaune and his team finally finished off their Grimm, not so subtly sending it careening down to its improvised grave a thousand feet below them in the foggy abyss below them, they all took the recent lull in activity to briefly recover their energy in the post-battle glory against the Deathstalker. At this point, while the majority of their small group all once again stood up to prepare to aid the other two partnerships on the platforms across the cavern that separated them, one figure in their group remained stationary in their prone position nearby, this figure being Lie Ren- who had felt the need necessary to collapse after their harrowing skirmish, mostly due to the fact that he himself had taken the brunt of the assaults made upon his team, though no worse for wear from what one would imagine; mostly, he just seemed exhausted at the moment.

Despite this small discrepancy, the remaining three standing members of this group of warriors continued to stare on, awestruck, as Ruby and Yang's teams dealt with their own remaining threat in their own respective way, which as far as they could see, would be quite the sight to remember.

As time went on and this plan continued to proceed along as expected, Ruby herself finally reached the Nevermore, having been 'launched' through the combined efforts of her sister Yang, Ms. Belladonna and Weiss Schnee, and after angling herself in the right position to further proceed with her plan, used her scythe's blade to grip the underside of the Grimm's throat. With her momentum, she carried it out from its previous icy confines and with her scythe gripping under its neck she carried it along the cliff, thanks in both part to the force generated by her weapon's recoil along with her partner's, Weiss', specially attuned runic semblance she was allowed to carry her the blackened creature up and along the flat, vertical surface of the cliff-edge.

And as the young girl yelled out in what could only be described as 'sheer determination', she continued to carry the large Grimm along until finally they reached the top of the precipice and with one last, great yell and thrust, yanked her weapon forward, causing her weapon to finally reach the point necessary to finally end the existence of this once terrible creature of darkness.

Thus, the Nevermore was slain, its head cleanly decapitated from its body as both head and body drifted down the cliffside and into the foggy canyon below soundlessly, briefly leaving the smallest of trails of red rose petals from its exposed wounds in its wake.

Looking on at the scene in awe, Jaune and his group, now including one newly-rejuvenated Lie Ren, continued to stare in unrestrained mesmerization. And by its dramatic, climactic end, one person in their group made known aloud the lone thought currently running through all their heads at the moment:

"Wow.", was all Jaune and anybody else had to say about that, and it was most certainly enough of a description of this moment.

And from her newly-anointed perch of victory, Ruby briefly strolled towards the cliff's edge and gazed down to the tier below, watching both the result of her work drift down into the unseen cavity below as well as the significantly-impressed visages of her classmates and teammates below; and either within or without her knowledge, to accentuate this prestigious moment in her life, a fair multitude of her red roses left behind by her semblance and actions drifted on beside her before carrying on into the wind moments later, making only the most subtle sound of fluttering as they departed.

Down below, one could hear the bold voice of Ruby's sister, Yang, as she made her own off-hand remark about the situation known, feeling it'd be a good time as any to let off a single, witty one-liner before they proceeded along out of there.

"Well…" She said, pausing to catch her breath after the harrowing and exciting skirmish just moments earlier, "… that was a thing.", and finishing the statement with a brief, sidelong glance to Ruby's partner, Weiss, before turning back to look at her sister, truly and utterly impressed at what she had been able to accomplish.

Though, while this momentary lull in excitement was well and truly welcome, the state of both time and the world do not stand still and like all things, change is to be expected. And, despite all that has happened thus far under normal pretenses, this path of reality-this universe-would prove to be no different than any other.

In other words: normally this would be the time they'd get to finish up the test and go back to doing whatever it was that students do in their off-time, but destiny had other plans at the moment.

From atop her perch, Ruby was the first to notice this peculiar event happening in the distance, watching silently as a pillar of unsettling darkness raised itself in a distant part of the forest, a place which seemed eerily familiar to her before soon realizing it was near where they had last seen the sole person not present amongst their groups at the moment.

Meanwhile, the others down below quickly turned their attention to the happening as well, both in reaction to Ruby's sudden change in focus as well as the accompanying sound of wind ' **whooshing'** rushing through the area at a steady rhythm as the thin tornado of dark, mystical energy continued to oscillate in its spot in the distance.

Then, after several agonizingly long moments of both curiosity and trepidation passed amongst both groups, the tornado slowly started dissipating and wavering before soon disappearing from the world entirely, leaving behind no trace that it had ever been there in the first place; Even the forest and the very ground the event took place upon seeming to be unaffected in the slightest, even the enormous form of the Goliath itself being seemingly absent from the area as far as they all could tell.

Despite this seemingly strange phenomenon coming to an end, the event itself was the least of this young heroine's concern as she realized that although whatever danger the event may have presented was now absent, she couldn't help but worry about her newly-made friend who was more than likely at or near the event's epicenter, and as a result of that, there was no telling what state of danger he could be left in within the event's aftermath.

And, without waiting a moment longer, the up-and-coming student of Beacon Academy wordlessly leapt from her point atop the cliff edge and began heading down towards the flattened clearing near Jaune and his group, and once again using both her weapon and semblance to bring her forward, she was more than capable of making it to this nearby landing point between her and her friend.

Just as she finished soaring past her own group as well as Jaune and co., she finally hit the ground and finished off the landing with a roll, dispersing the energy of the impact, and ended it with a crouch before taking off into a run towards the epicenter of the occurrence without even a glance or word of notice to anyone else; seeing this, the others too went off and followed along in Ruby's wake, some of them in curiosity, some of them in camaraderie for either Ruby or Gabriel, or simply to accompany their teammate/friend(s) as they trailed back once again towards the relic site.

'Hold on, Gabriel! Just please hold on!' Rang the thought of one Ruby Rose, the thought itself seeming to carry her even further and faster with each passing moment that it was left unresolved within her mind.

Nevertheless, this girl carried on and cast away all weariness within her and rushed forth towards the uncertain future and all the risks it may have held, unheeding of any danger that may have lied ahead of her, all for the sake of friendship and all that lied beyond it.

* * *

 **(Several minutes earlier, Point of Interest-Gabriel)(Music Track: Mastodon-The Czar)[A/N: Feel free to listen to this song while you read further on into the chapter, or don't. Your choice, really.]**

A roar sounded through the air, followed by a shove by the giant beast's head as it tried to cast off its maddening target from its ivory-white mask, the person in question having attempted to pierce through its unbreakable mask to no avail over the last few moments.

A moment later, the un-winged form of Gabriel bounded through the air, leaping back as he used the inertia from the beast launching him off its mask before he rolled and tucked himself in as he went into a single, simple backflip and landed safely on the ground with a short stagger as he tried to regain his body's sense of balance.

However, Gabriel had no time to further reflect on such sensation as he was forced to promptly leap to the side as he evaded the large form of the Goliath as it narrowly missed him in its attempt to charge him, making him feel like a Matador of Spain or some other bull-taming culture. Though, once he was certain that he was at least able to catch his breath for the moment, Gabriel looked upon the progress of his work he had done in these last couple of minutes since his bout with the Goliath had started and couldn't help but grin from the small measure of pride the sight afforded him.

Where there had once only been the pitch-black armored hide of the Goliath's body, its skin was now marred with numerous, if somewhat shallow, orange-red scorch-lines that ran along the creature's sides, back, and especially along its pillar-like legs; The latter seeming to somehow have remained surprisingly intact despite their otherwise frayed appearance along their edges.

Despite the Grimm's otherwise impressive defenses and stature, because of his nimble size and abilities, Gabriel was able to land numerous strikes against the Grimm over the last few moments due to the mobility afforded to him by his flight and his sheer amount of luck. And, while the strikes he had landed in themselves were otherwise completely successful in their execution, their effectiveness was much less so. Not because the strikes themselves were dampened by whatever resistances the Goliath may have developed over its vast life but because the Grimm's immense size in itself dwarfed the very length and caliber of the attacks the up-and-coming pupil had otherwise been using up until that time; where slashes that would have otherwise left lesser Grimm beheaded now only left what amounted to shallow stabs and slices along the Goliath's body and cleaves that would have sheared Ursa-sized Grimm in half now only seemed to either leave shallow slices that glanced along the creature's skin or resulted in slicing efforts which were tantamount to hacking away at a redwood tree… with a katana; effective, but overall still lacking.

So, while the attacks were indeed working, the progress that each strike made was negligible and it would take repeated, concerted effort in one particular spot to create a mortal injury against this colossal creature. However, such would allow the creature to know where the human's efforts would be concentrated at and it would more than likely act accordingly to counteract the human by either blocking or evading the human's strikes to reach said spot or attempt to lure the human in a seemingly-weak spot only to have him grabbed and thrashed, if not worse, by the Goliath.

Knowing this, rather than play into the Grimm's hands and allow it the opportunity to develop such a plan in the first place, Gabriel decided to go with a more… _effective_ option than just hack away at the grizzled creature's body with just his cherished weapon alone. But first, he'd need a plan to help carry him along his course and as the details of that plan steadily developed within his mind he began figuring out what he was going to need in order to do in order to execute it.

As the Goliath turned around to face him once it realized it had completely missed its target, Gabriel's hands shimmered as lightning briefly shimmered into existence before him and began traveling down towards and along his arms, following their shape as he kept his' arms out in front of him. The flow of lightning slowly began to materialize a familiar object within the man's grasp until a second later Gabriel's enchanted guitar, _Jasmine_ , was once again in Gabriel's deft and able hands, shining in all of its pristine, whitened glory in the brilliant rays of light cast upon it by the sun on what would have otherwise been another unremarkable day of sunshine. And, almost as suddenly as it appeared, the coalescing lightning vanished, its job complete until the next time its summoner called upon it.

Feeling the cold, white-plastic-ivory of his treasured instrument, Gabriel quickly set about placing his hands and fingers at their familiar spots with one hand being at the top of the neck of the guitar, settled along what some would consider the 'starting position' for default guitar playing while the other, right hand hovered lower along the strings of the guitar, ready to pluck the strings at a moment's notice and unleash whatever muscle-memory retained melody he'd decide upon; unconsciously, he could feel the rugged friction of cloth mesh as it rubbed up over his own cloth and armor, reminding him of the additional bit of security that his guitar strap provided in case he'd need to use both of his hands in the future and not worry about dropping said guitar onto the unforgiving ground, or whatever other dangers might ever be waiting down below.

Recalling an old memory, Gabriel's hands went into action, muscle-memory propelling them forward with a speed that only came with practiced ease from hours of rehearsal and familiarity. Allowing himself only the slightest bit of appreciation of the tone of the melody, after several moments of playing, his enchanted guitar solo rang out into the world, summoning forth its otherworldly creation. Then, at the same time, both voice and thought rang out concurrently with but only one thought and command, making itself take form at last: **[A/N: Audio segment presented is to be used as reference for what the guitar solo would have sounded like.] (Eric Calderone-Hayley's comet, 0:18-0:26)**

"Hayley's comet…" And with that, the attack began to take form.

Once the solo's final note rang out, a large vehicle-sized ball of plasma and electricity formed from above and behind the grounded man below it before wordlessly being sent soaring towards its target-The Goliath.

The great ball of flame soared, gathering more and more intensive heat as it picked up the semi-viable fuel that was the air around it, scorching it with a celestial, molten energy that could only come from the very composition of stars or suns. This process went along for several moments, leaving wavy fumes of wavering energy in its wake, singing the grass and earth below it as it traveled several feet off the ground but close enough to leave its own, passive mark where it went. Then, at last, the attack neared its target before it promptly, and dramatically, impacted against it, silencing everything else in the area with a resounding **'Boom'**.

Moments passed and dust, smoke and drifting fumes obscured the sight of anything throughout the area. The only things left in the space being both the sound of flames as they lowly roared from their site of impact, licking away at its unseen target as the white flames of the attack began to cool, turning blue for a few brief moments before dulling down into the standard, orange and red-hued flames associated with any standard flame before those hues too began to dwindle away altogether in the obscurity presented within the large cloud of dust and dirt.

Coughing echoed throughout the silenced area as Gabriel tried to expel whatever gaseous vapors were left in the aftermath of his strike as he wandered through the area. Waving his hand in front of himself to help clear a bit of the dust around him, he began to look around for any detail that would indicate any remains of his large opponent. Although the attack did seem to have reached its target, Gabriel was fairly certain that that attack couldn't have done the Goliath in already and thus kept himself ready to act at a moment's notice in case his instincts were right.

As his gaze flicked side-to-side, something from the peripherals of his vision caught his attention. Turning to face it, through the dust cloud he began to see an eerie, red glow emanate from some unseen source. Though, as he continued to look at it, he soon realized the glow was much closer than he figured, being only several meters before him, and an ominous feeling of forbearance began to creep up on him as the glow suddenly began to rise, raising from five feet, then ten feet before stopping at around thirty to fifty feet above him.

It was then, he knew, that his opponent had most certainly survived.

The dust around him began to clear and more and more of the area became visible. Soon enough, the dust lifted to the point where he could finally fully see the Goliath before him, though no sooner than he realized the source of the peculiar, red glow did it suddenly come down upon him, intent on sending him into oblivion. As soon as he realized the oncoming strike, he promptly pulled out and extended his scythe just in time to block the searing red object with the outward curve of his blade. The two disintegrating forces clashing for but an instant before the Goliath's overwhelming mass and size instantly won out, the sudden strike from the creature causing the lone warrior to recoil visibly from the force of the attack, so much so that it caused him to skid along the ground backwards, maintaining the same, blocking pose until he finally came to a stop some distance away.

Shaking off the trembling effect the Goliath left in his arms after the attack, Gabriel lowered his upward stance which he had since been holding, prepared to retaliate in case the Goliath decided to charge him. But, at the moment, Gabriel took the time to further examine the sudden, new capabilities his enemy had just presented him with, since as the Goliath recovered from the heavy swipe of its head it gave to the hero as it shoved him away, the Goliath looked up and with it, its newly donned feature made itself much more evident now that, for just this one moment before calamity would inevitably begin, it faced its opponent in full.

While much of the Goliath remained the same and much of its body still retained the still-glowing, if fading, scorch-lines of scars Gabriel's strikes had left behind on it, there was the single, new feature that the Goliath now donned. As the red glow of the creature's lone, working eye shined for any and all to see, so too was there another, more prominent glow which further illuminated the mask and face of the Grimm in the now-clearing dust. Where there had once only been large white, prominent tusks that grew out of the black hide that made up the entire Grimm's body, now in the same, curved shape of its previous placeholder was a newer, more deadly incarnation of those same features. In the stead of bare, whitened ivory horns made of what seemed to be a natural, nearly-unbreakable, skeletal-alloy, those same bones now exuded a horrid, red glow, their core being white-hot in intensity. And, for all he knew, this new development might as well have been a physical manifestation of the Grimm's ire towards him, but even he knew that _that_ answer was far from true.

Though, that did beg the question: Where did this new development come from? Or, how could the Goliath have achieved such a feat in the first place? And, truthfully, there was no definitive answer. A cursory explanation for this could have easily been that this was simply just a hereditary, if such a term could be used for the sake of Grimm, defensive/offensive countermeasure, something comparable to that of the Nevermore's feather-launching ability and more or less was something they would inherit and come to master in time, naturally.

Another, more debatable answer was the idea concerning what was perhaps the single most elusive yet widespread subject within, and without, the world of Remnant-Dust. In which it could be theorized that, rather than this ability being naturally inherited through one generation of Grimm and into the next, that this may have, in fact, been a capability granted after extended exposure to varying amounts of essences of Dust, perhaps even the creatures inlaying or storing such elements of dust through some unknown means in the Grimm's, perhaps just the Goliath's in particular, very composition or perhaps through some enigmatic technique this Goliath itself had stumbled upon in its vast existence in the world.

Whatever the case may be, all that Gabriel knew about it at the moment was that it was very angry, very big and on top of that, very, very dangerous because of this new change. And it was these flitting thoughts which were suddenly cast aside to make room for either the much more abstract and reactive instincts of any human or the for more calculative, constructive thoughts which constantly begged for his attention. And as a plan soon began to take form within his head, the latter seemed to become the more prevailing state of mind for him as the moments passed.

Knowing already that he could exploit his opponent's vulnerability to lightning-based attacks, Gabriel had already decided that, amongst his' repertoire of considerably useful skills and talents he had used thus far, he'd have to up the ante a bit in order to create the moment required for him to finally finish off the Goliath once and for all, and he knew just what he wanted to use in order to get it done.

As he once again began to materialize his guitar within his grasp, the electricity from the passive action of doing so catching the attention of the Goliath.

Upon seeing the coalescing energy form near its opponent, the Goliath knew now that the human before him was setting out to unleash another barrage of troublesome, if somewhat incapacitating, combination or permutation of attacks, and both it and its opponent knew of its glaring weakness to large amounts of electricity. And knowing that if it did not act soon, there would be the smallest of chances that its opponent could turn what was an otherwise stagnant stalemate into a battle which could easily turn in the human's favor. So, seeing no other alternative than to act, it charged forth with the intent to both debilitate its enemy whilst also providing the opportunity to create an opening of its own, whether it would be through use of its enormous elephantine limbs, its powerful trunk which it would use to coil and strangle the diminutive creature or through the use of the new disintegrative properties of its tusks, an honor that no other human up until that point had survived long enough to earn. Whatever the case would be, the human would die here and now, or it in itself would die trying to do so, lest the goals of another being greater than even it would surely come to crumble and burn in time at the hands of this unyielding human.

And without any further time left to waste, the Goliath charged towards it human counterpart, shaking the ground in its wake and searing the very air before it, and in doing so causing the warrior to act in turn.

With not very much distance left between the two, Gabriel summoned his wings onto his back and mentally willed them to flap once with great force, swiftly carrying him upwards and backwards as he tried to keep distance between both himself and the oncoming Goliath. Once he was in the air, Gabriel quickly refocused back onto his guitar and went about shredding on the enchanted instrument for several moments as he summoned forth another otherworldly type of projectile to use on his steadily gaining opponent.

Moments passed before Gabriel finally finished off the solo, and none too soon since the Goliath itself had gained over half the remaining distance between them and now stood, or charged, an uncomfortably close distance of twenty to thirty meters from him and closing.

"Sign of Horns." Gabriel uttered as the attack began to take shape above him much like it did with his Hayley's Comet counterpart. **(Eddie Van Halen-Eruption, 0:02-0:18)**

In the ensuing instance that it took for the attack to take form and begin, what appeared above the enchanted-instrument user was an ethereal-blue hand forming out of nothing, being around the width and height of any standard vehicle (i.e. excluding trucks, vans and the like.) but only half as long. Once it had fully formed and solidified, if you could say such for an ethereal-based construct, the hand curled up in itself to the point where once there had only been a hand, flattened-out and palm-down, now hovered a fist with only its pointer and pinky fingers, creating the infamous 'Sign of Horns' known throughout all rock and metal history.

It was at this moment of observation that, once the attack had formed in full, the 'horned' fist's properties finally became known. Wild and erratic arcs of electric curled and flowed all around and along the faded, blue-ish hand before flowing towards the two extended digits pointing out, where they bounced within some unseen, unspoken field of conduction as if the two fingers themselves acted as lightning rods for the raging currents of electricity.

Once the moment of observation had come and gone, through some unspoken signal by its user, the electrical currents which had previously been flowing freely between the two extended fingers suddenly ceased, if only for a moment, as they, instead, emanated from the forward-most point of each finger and towards the Goliath ahead of them, the hand itself disappearing soon after.

The Goliath, upon seeing this ethereal projection, girded itself in anticipation of its foe's devious offensive action and continued to carry on unperturbedly rather than allow its sense of caution to impede it through either hesitation or deliberation.

And so, the two powerful arcs of electricity carried on through the air unimpeded for what seemed like a timeless eternity, but was in all actuality probably only a single moment of flight, before they ruthlessly connected with its target.

For the first time since the battle had begun, the Goliath had stalled in its approach, left twitching and spasming in place as its body was wracked with rogue signals all throughout its nervous system, or whatever acted as a nervous system for the Grimm. Although, because the Grimm itself was as massive as it was, the resistances allowed by it through both its size, experiences and even simply girding itself in anticipation of its foe's technique, it was able to shirk off a great deal amount of the effectiveness the electrical strike would have otherwise had and even now the effects of the electrical discharge were already beginning to wane as the Goliath's body slowly ceased in its spasming and began to respond to its body's own sense of control with every passing moment.

Though, by this time, Gabriel had already begun to act and without further delay he once again brought the only other weapon that he had that he knew could be used effectively to eliminate the Goliath and, whilst still in a backward-drifting glide, brought out his scythe and floated even higher into the air until he slowed to a stop some distance above the canopy of the forest and began to channel raw, unbridled energy into the weapon.

Waving his hand over the blade of the weapon, he channeled pitch-black, near-translucent, coalescing energy into the weapon whilst his other hand channeled more of this power into the rest of the weapon from its place on the handle, now altering the blade's already extraordinary cutting ability and enhancing it to near-immeasurable proportions, now making it capable of slicing through even the light of stars and the heavens themselves if need be. But, such demands were, as of now, uncalled for as he simply needed to bring down the towering form of the Grimm as it trembled in place far down below him. And at last, the weapon itself had now been fully encased in the shimmering energy of its user.

Once the scythe was fully prepared, Gabriel adjusted his grip on it and moved his right hand to grip the handle above where his left hand was. Once he had a firm grasp of the weapon, he raised the weapon up high into the air above and in front of him, the handle of the weapon now straightening out to be perpendicular to the ground while the blade of the scythe itself stretched and pointed out to Gabriel's left; the sight being reminiscent to that of a scene of someone presenting some item or offering to a higher power or being.

However, if the Goliath itself were to bother, or were capable of, looking up into the sky at that moment, because of the angle at which it itself stood and where the sun was positioned at that moment, the Grimm would have seen the most peculiar sight of a luminous, divine-looking figure holding up a contrastingly ethereal-dark item of seemingly great power, and above those two articles of interest was the sun, now bearing a partial shadow along the upper part of its curve.

For just this moment, at just this angle, the sun now bore… a crescent eclipse.

And a moment later, Gabriel released the grip his left hand had on the weapon and swung _Crescent Eclipse_ until it swayed to a stop behind him, now remaining in a pose not unlike that of a blacksmith preparing to swing their hammer downwards onto an anvil.

And, for a few, sweet seconds of stillness and silence, there was nothing. No tension, no sense of pressure, no chance gust of destiny flowing through the area to create a serene sense of atmosphere. No, there was just peace. Harmony. Asylum.

Then, there was only focus and intrepid resolution as its bearer, in the blink of an eye, plummeted towards what would be the final clash between he and his opponent, one way or another.

At the same time, the Goliath had, at last, shaken off the ebbing effects of its state of paralysis the high-voltage attack the enemy had left it in. Though, no sooner had it regained control of its body was its instinctual sense of danger beginning to blare at full-alarm, alerting it to some cursory, unseen danger around it, though it could already guess what, or rather who, that threat was and already it began to seek it out, starting from where it had last seen the human drifting away moments earlier. As it turned its head to-and-fro in its attempt to catch sight of its illusive adversary, a shadow from its peripheral vision caught its attention, causing it to flicker its gaze briefly down towards the ground unto which the shadow was cast before turning to look upward. What it saw was both surprising yet at the same time not entirely unexpected at all. Since, as it took in the finer details of its air-bound nemesis, it was not the least bit astonished to see the human's use of flight since it had already seen the use of such an ability at the beginning of their brief, minute even, bout some minutes prior. However, it was the new, supplementary property its opponent had added to its weapon of choice that had it unnerved at the moment. While no other human or Faunus had even come close to piercing through its massive, natural defenses that it had developed over its lifetime, this human, despite its expansive repertoire of mystical techniques, had still only done so much more damage against it than anyone else before it, only succeeding in adding a few, new scars to add to its already weathered hide while also being able to survive far longer than any other opponent it had ever encountered up until this point, aside from those who had outright retreated from the large beast but even then some of those poor, desolate souls had not been swift enough to escape the Goliaths wrath at that time. And, as such, it saw no real reason to be too weary of any more of this human's actions, despite the new change of armament he brought forthcoming, and instead chose to simply parry its opponent's actions and attacks as they clashed against its own counteractive defenses, then shunt the human aside like it had effortlessly done before and at the end of it all it would finally deliver to its opponent their long overdue execution.

And so, even as the human grew ever-nearer, the Goliath simply tensed itself in anticipation of once again meeting the advancing charge of the human, this time with its own, laser-like tusks which would either result in a clash of strengths in which it would surely come out victorious or would outright result in the disintegration of the human's seemingly-prized armament followed by the human unwittingly impaling themselves along said aforementioned feature(s) by their own hand; it would, however, at the moment of contact between blood and heated-ivory, disengage its tusk's extraordinary properties in a sadistic change in course, simply planning to leave the human there to suffer at the forefront of its tusk while it would stand there and watch the human slowly bleed out and writhe in agony for as long as possible rather than merely have it broil and turn to ash in mere moments after contact with its tusk's newly-premiered properties. For as patient as it was, it could no longer wait to end this human's existence and with it make this vision of vengeance a reality…

The warrior, however, was oblivious to such ruminations from the Goliath, instead focusing on his own train of thought as he continued forward to execute one of the last legs of his plan-in-motion. For in order to accomplish this next feat he had in mind he still required the use of one other tool within his possession- his Pocket-watch. And, acting on that mental note, he absentmindedly fished out said device and brought it out by his left hand, his right still wielding the scythe behind him. Once it was secured within his grip, Gabriel already began channeling minute residues of his own innate energy into the device, instantly priming it for use once it recognized its handler. As this happened and he was fully certain of the device's readiness, Gabriel, now only a relatively short distance from the Goliath, gave only one utterance as he activated the device:

"Blade of the Crescent Moon." He said to nobody in particular, his voice carrying on into the wind as it echoed minutely as both his voice and he along with it blurred away into an after-effect, then nothing at all.

The Goliath paused, at first because of the sudden disappearance of its opponent as its mind went into overdrive trying to reevaluate every piece of visual information it could recall as it tried to gather any traces of evidence which would lead it to the current whereabouts of the human. However, another reason for the pause suddenly arose, its nature so subtle the Goliath had yet to notice it at first until suddenly tension along certain parts of its body alerted it to some sort of disparate anomaly. At first it was only a sudden tension along the beast's large extremities, subsequently shadowed by a brief feeling of numbness. What followed could only be described as, ironically enough, indescribable sensations of agony, seeming to be primarily focused on only just the Grimm's four limbs; though that small detail would provide no means of comfort for the Goliath.

As the Goliath stumbled forward, its body ungraciously shifting to a significantly lower height as its body fell and 'stood' on nubs which had moments ago been the creature's knees, the remaining two pairs of severed sections that used to serve as the its shins and feet now found themselves wobbling with no sort of weighted tension to keep them pinned to the earth below and simply collapsed haphazardly in their spots beside the beast's settled body. The sensations created by such a dismemberment proving to be too much for even the Goliath to handle as it raised its head from its settled position and cried out futilely in unrestrained torment.

During this whole process, the cloaked warrior appeared at last, shimmering into existence with his scythe extended outwards in front of him, his arm's position already in post-swing as it extended outwards in front of him, the effects of this action already making themselves evident as the Goliath collapsed behind him; unnoticed by either him or the Goliath, a rushing gust of wind swept through the clearing from the _Crescent Eclipse's_ point of impact against the Grimm's limbs, the passive effect of the instantaneous slice left on the air finally taking form as the cascading wind from the attack rushed outwards towards the clearing's edges, coming to a stop once the arcing winds themselves clashed against the sturdy constitution of the trees around them, waning away and leaving the area in stillness once again… until the Goliath's roar shattered that tranquil image.

 **Wroaoaoaoarrrrhhhh!**

As the large Grimm's pained roar rang out across the area, Gabriel once again blurred out of existence, not once turning around to survey the damage his strike left, already knowing full well what effects he'd left behind.

Blurring back into existence an instant later, Gabriel now reappeared just in front of the Goliath, his body already turned in mid-swing as he began to bring the scythe to bear in a full 180 degree arc around his back and to his front where it would clash against the Goliath's nigh-invulnerable array of defenses, whether it was the Goliath's sheer strength, its tusks or its stark-white, nigh-invulnerable mask.

Once the Goliath's cry of anguish tapered off it once again opened its eyes, having closed them for a moment as it tried to deal with the sheer amount of agony it was going through at the moment before it let out that self-admittedly pitiful sound of weakness that was its bellow a moment earlier, only to stare into the encroaching form of its radiant opponent and their unexpectedly dangerous, offensive tool of destruction. With only a cursory glance at the weapon and its opponent and but a moment to act, the Goliath, in an act of unprecedented will and tenacity, further raised itself along its fore legs while it girded its back legs to absorb the impact of the impending clash, the act of doing so further enhancing the pain it felt in those extremities to the point where it became almost crippling, though it still continued to persevere in its actions and carried on unwaveringly. In doing this, the Goliath was able to raise the forefront of its body to the point where it could fully 'stand' up against the oncoming human, where it then was finally able to raise its head, or more specifically, its laser-like tusks, just in time to meet the human's seemingly unstoppable power with its own unmovable form.

And, at the moment of contact between the two uncompromising forces, the very world itself seemed to quake; though, such an effect might have been felt only between the two conflicting powers themselves or at most only in the immediate vicinity of the area.

Power met power, force met force, and this was, at its most abstract and fundamental level, a fully-contained war; two sides, seemingly ever-warring but never relenting in the slightest. The very air, the very _atmosphere_ , around them seemed to vibrate and ripple, a visible testament to the sheer clash of wills going on between the two. And for many seemingly endless moments this act continued, the result still undecided for the moment, neither side looking like they would yield in the slightest within their seemingly frozen states, having remained this way since their moment of contact several, agonizingly-long moments earlier. And for a brief, few seconds it looked like they would forever remain this way, almost like a static, paired version of the battles in the afterlife of Valhalla in Norse mythology.

But then, suddenly, something began to give and an instant later something shattered…

The sound seemed to echo, forever reminding and taunting its owner of their greatest moment of failure right before they would suddenly cease to exist at all. Then, the scattered shards from which the sound originated from drifted into the air, the moment seeming to pass by in slow-motion, frame-by-frame, moment-after-moment. And, as these frames of time continued to carry on into moments, the glow with which the shards were imbued with finally began to dim before returning to the default state of their original composition, color and all. One pair of eyes stared into another pair and for the first time since they had met, one pair of eyes widened visibly in shock and surprise while the other pair hardened, focusing along with the body and mind it was attached to as it carried on the final strike between them.

From the epicenter of the devastation, a glowing red pair of tusks drifted into the air, minute speckles and shards of what was once unshatterable ivory now finding themselves flying up into the air due to the sheer force created from the forceful reaction of being severed from contact with the cleaved ivory that remained at the base of the Goliath's 'tusk socket'. Several moments after being severed, the tusks themselves began to dim in their red glow before it dissipated altogether as it impacted against the ground an instance later, and despite being cut off from its constantly resupply of internal-energy, the residual heat left upon the isolated dead tissue of the ivory was still fairly impressive, so much so that mere contact with the ground moments after separation left both the grass and its soil singed in their spots, creating visible trails of smoke as a result of the basic chemical reaction; though not to the point that it could incidentally create a fire, the reaction happening far too quickly for that to even be a remote possibility.

Flinching back visibly from the sudden turn of events, the Goliath could do nothing more than gawk once it ran out of room to flinch backwards into as time seemed to slow for it at an excruciatingly horrid pace, the Goliath kneeling there while it noted its cursory failure as its tusks flew and fell away, followed shortly by the horrid experience of watching and feeling the human's unyielding weapon continue along its path, getting closer and closer to its body until there was the sudden sensation of further torment as the human effortlessly sliced through its strong, yet still quite vulnerable, trunk which had been raised right alongside the tusks themselves, where it had been primed and ready to either jab or grab the human at the Goliath's command had the Grimm succeeded. But, such thoughts were fleeting as pain further gripped the creature's mind and body at the moment, leaving it distracted and distraught despite all it had promised itself and set out to do.

Gabriel, having already noted his success, not doubting his capabilities for even a moment, continued his body's sense of inertia and continued to twirl himself and his weapon along with him once he had severed the Goliath's three facial features; the second tusk being cleaved much more easily than the first now that its supply of scorching energy had left it in the wake of the first tusk shattering. Once he had nearly carried himself a full 360 degrees, Gabriel altered the horizontal axis' angle of his swing to the point where it could almost be considered perfectly vertical as he brought the scythe back around again to swing downwards onto the Goliath in front him, now that there was nothing in the way of obstructing either his view or his weapon's swing as he brought it forward one last time.

And so, both victim and executioner watched as the blackened scythe's blade continued to descend towards it mark and for a brief, vulnerable moment the Goliath turned to stare at the human, the sudden action causing the recipient to flick their gaze, but not their focus, towards its red-hued counterpart. As their gazes met, no words were said between the two, nothing needed to be said for the Goliath's look alone conveyed an entire array of emotions to their witness: anger, resentment, disappointment, sadness, envy, serenity and finally, yet surprisingly, acceptance, and it was this final emotion which remained the most prominent as the Goliath's final few moments came crashing down upon it, the scythe leading the way.

For what seemed like an eternity, down the scythe went, leaving a dark streak of energy in its immediate wake is it sliced through the air, leaving behind a low-rushing of air as it did so. And so, this went on for the last few moments of its descent until finally, the moment came where the foremost point of the blade encountered something solid once more, its effects immediate.

A sickening crunch filled the area as something solid was either crushed or cracked. Then, a moment later, there was silence in the area once more.

For the second time that day, blackened blood streamed down along the Goliath's face, though in this instance the line was closer to the face's center and a bit higher than it was before.

For this time, the strike had, instead, been concentrated at the mask's, and essentially the Goliath's, forehead; And, despite the much thicker depth which that area carried in general on both the mask as well as the entirety of the skull itself, the scythe carried through without further incident, now laid imbedded within the forehead of the Goliath's face, the creature still kneeling in its spot, now completely and utterly still.

The signature glow which had for so long accompanied the Goliath's deep-red eyes since the beginning of humanity's concepts of time and the Grimm's existence… now began to slowly dim away; The roaring fires that constituted the glow which had up until recently been acting as a visual reminder of the Grimm's growing ire, ever since its first encounter with what would come to be its final opponent, now began to lessen from the creature's eye as its life began to leave it, the glow now receding back to its default, dull, blood-red state.

That same dulling, red eye continued to gaze towards the same, exact sight which had occupied its owner's final thoughts as its consciousness and focus began to lessen. And, as it continued to stare into the darkened veil that hid its opponent's features from it, what laid within that very same darkness that it stared into also stared back at it as well.

And with a final look of acceptance of its fate within that single pool of red, the last vestiges of both its vibrant, red hue along with its final bits of life faded away entirely, forever.

The Goliath, one of the greatest examples of any Grimm that had ever been created, and despite all possibility and numerous cases to the contrary, had at last fallen at the hands of a mortal, a human. This brief yet decisive skirmish between these two powers serving as both a reminder and as a testament to any and all that any Grimm-no matter how powerful-was as fallible and vulnerable as any other being, unable to escape the cold grip of death; That despite what its longevity and grand expanse of experiences granted it, at the end of it all it too could no longer escape its inevitable fate. Now, between these two clashing powers, only one still remained standing, still endured…

As the life drained from the Goliath its body grew less and less responsive and its involuntary bodily movements, whether it was its trembling as it sat in silent torment or subtle movements made by simply trying to stay upright, too began to lessen. Then, almost without perception, its movements had ceased entirely and with its body being nothing but an empty shell, it slackened in place.

Observing the subtle cessation as it took its course, as Gabriel felt the creature's weight succumb to the ever-present pull of gravity and it began to drag both him and his weapon down with it he leaned back to resist the force is tried to drag him down with it and with a quick pull he brought the blade of his scythe out of the Grimm's skull, the dark energy imbued in it ebbing away and returning the weapon back to its original, searing-white glow.

Now that the battle was over and he could relax, Gabriel unconsciously allowed his glowing sets of wings to dematerialize, allowing him to drop the last few feet remaining between him and the ground with a soft thud. Just as he had done that, the Goliath's husk finally crumbled to the ground in in an ungraceful heap, the ground reverberating lowly as this happened, nearly jolting Gabriel from his spot right in front of it. Though, just before Gabriel could do anything else, the Goliath seemed to decide to present to him one last brief spectacle to signify its final departure and its ultimate downfall.

In a majestic, last display of beauty, that despite being such a common occurrence to anyone who had fought Grimm or had seen them expire, no matter how inconsequential or grand those creatures may have been in their time, the Goliath began to fizzle and drift away into blackened dust. As the process continued on, despite the Grimm's exceedingly great size, the rate of degeneration for the Grimm's body seemed to match the usual rate in which a Grimm would usually cease to exist altogether. Thus, given several long moments or a minute's time, the Goliath would soon disappear from the face of the world altogether.

As the blade of the scythe returned back into the slot from which it came, Gabriel rested the body of the weapon over one shoulder with his' right hand, gripping the base of its length to keep it from falling as he let the moment of idleness wash over him while his stature visibly sagged in fatigue as the events of the day finally started to catch up with him. Though, as Gabriel stood there and took in the sight of the broiling and drifting form of the cloud of darkness that once served as the body of the Goliath, he wondered that despite the fact that neither this Grimm nor any other had any trace of a soul or sense of reason, he couldn't help but admire the confidence to which the Goliath carried itself with and the strength and tenacity it had shown, even in its last moments of desperation. So, despite whatever anyone else would have done at this moment of victory, whether it was cheering, silent exuberance at a hard-fought battle or other like-minded activities of excitement, Gabriel was among those with the mindset who could at least admire and come to respect the strength and extent to which their enemies fought with and as such sought fit to give it this one brief, deserving moment of silence before he said his final piece to one of the toughest adversaries he had come across so far.

"…Is this all it ever comes down to? Through the course of all this time that we've known each other, was this conflict what you really wanted to carry out? Was all that you committed here really done under your own rule in that the same, baser instincts that may have once dominated your thoughts at a lesser, far more infantile part of your existence were allowed to take reign over you now, a view which most people would have me believe, or was there something else to it? Was the soul that I carry with my own really so alluring to your kind that you really couldn't help but be drawn back to it, despite the brief crossing to which we were introduced? Was it any of that or was it madness that drove you to me, the one who would be bound to carry out your terminal fate? I don't know, but now, neither will you…"

All the while as he spoke, more and more of the dissolving fog that now made up the Grimm's body continued to reduce its body to the char that may have once created it to the point that the body began to visibly recede upon itself towards the center of its body, where it would more than likely reach a singular point before dissipating altogether in an otherwise uneventful fizzle of air. And it was the beginning of this developing sight and this series of musings where Gabriel turned towards the objective which he had, up until this point, been neglecting to investigate and thus began the long trek there.

Though, he had gotten no further than just past the Goliath's crumbling body before the peripheral sense of… _something_ caught his attention. The exact nature of whatever it was that called for his attention eluded him for the moment and as he haltered in his step so too did whatever it was that had called out to him. And, just before he could leave, it took him a moment to realize what exactly the nature of this _call_ had been and it was this sudden realization that left him both petrified as well as terrified.

For as he began to leave, the sound which had carried itself along the undercurrent of the passing wind and into his ear was not a grumble, not a groan… but a voice-A confident, matured and _distinctly_ feminine voice, one which he was sure he had never come across in all his time here in the world of Remnant. And thus, understanding this, the reality of the situation had him on edge and he suddenly found himself asking this question:

'Why is there a woman's voice calling out to me… and why is it coming from somewhere I _know_ it shouldn't be coming from?'

After a momentary pause, Gabriel steadily turned his body to the right, back towards the direction where the voice seemed to come from, where he encountered both a relatively familiar yet entirely different sight altogether from the one he had just left behind.

In the wake of a dissolving cloud of black ash that marked the final resting place of the Goliath, a small, twirling vortex had developed within the blackened haze, all the while surrounding an even darker, man-sized entity which held no definitive features as to ascertain its identity as either human or something similar. And yet, despite its rather ambiguous appearance, there was one last detail that could be gleamed from it through the shadowed haze around it that identified it as something at least akin to human.

As he turned in full to face the newly-arisen specter and eyed its darkened constitution so too did it, did _she_ , gaze back at him with pitch-black eyes, distinguishing themselves from the rest of the figure's body by their blazing red irises. And then, those very same eyes seemed to crinkle, which as he continued to peer at them suddenly made him realize that the figure was now smiling at him.

" _ **And so, we meet at last, dear traveler."**_

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 **A/N: And there you have it, months of rehashing, rewriting and reconfiguring finished at last into a final, finished product. I hope you all enjoyed it and I sincerely hope you all stick around for the next update which will answer all, or at least most, of the unanswered questions presented throughout the story so far and perhaps indicate where this story will be going from there. The next chapter should only be just a wrap-up so it shouldn't take as long as this chapter to post; though I won't promise anything for or against that point. Thank you all for your continued investment into the story and I appreciate each and every one of you for taking an interest in the story, you guys/gals are what make this story worth writing, along with just the simple idea of creating a certain take on a story.**

 **Until next time, this is The Brutal Legend, logging off and signing out. ;)**


	11. A Flip-side Omitted

**Disclaimer: Do not, will not and shall not own the rights to RWBY or any other RoosterTeeth productions. Those belong to their respective intellectual or licensed owners and are in no way infringed upon by what happens in this story or any ideas it may introduce. Only the creative freedoms expressed through this literary work are mine to own and affect, respectively. Thank you for your time and have a nice day.**

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"Through faults in ourselves and in the world around us, we are able to find our truths."-G.V.H.

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Color. It could be argued that any one or any combination of two of said colors could be considered the most beautiful or the most attractive in comparison to the others within their spectrum, respective to a person's particular sense of taste. For example, some would argue that blue could be considered the most beautiful color of the spectrum because of its calming, serene influence it has amongst its viewers. Others, however, could argue that green was the 'best', for it was both a mixture of the two primary colors blue and yellow and thus shared their overall appeal while creating a certain sense of beauty all its own as it reflected a likeness to nature in a way almost no other color could. And while much else could be said about every other permutation of color visible, and even invisible, at the moment one color stood out against all the others for one person in particular.

For as Gabriel looked into the blazing, red eyes that gazed thoughtfully back at him, he couldn't help but feel the certain sense of authority such a color exuded. For it felt, despite seeing such a pigmentation used all throughout his' life thus far, the appeal that the vibrant, red tone had over him seemed almost primal, as if reminding a more baser part of his' mind and body of instincts long-forged throughout his' own ancestor's course through human history and the blood with which had been spilled throughout the course of those lives, whether it was their own or of those that crossed them so very long ago.

It was this sense of thought that Gabriel found himself in as he stood there transfixed by the radiant aura such powerful eyes exuded towards any that gazed in their direction. Though, soon enough, the rest of the form which accompanied this solely exposed feature was what brought him out of his' transfixion as the voice to which the form belonged to once again made itself known.

" _ **You know, I never thought I'd see the day where one of my most prized servants would fall to the hands of man. Perhaps maybe at an earlier, more inexperienced time in its life like so many others of its kind in a time that seemed like so very long ago. These ones, these 'Goliaths' as you call them, were amongst the most brilliant of their kind, where they were able to survive and grow to an unprecedented level which made them all but infallible. So, for one to fall during what would have been the summit of its power, you really must be as capable as I feared you would be."**_ The specter said to him in a tone of unreserved admiration, though whether it was more for the idea surrounding the very existence of the creature or its downfall, as well as the one who carried it out, was uncertain. Though, in either case both possibilities unsettled him, for who was this being to know about not only the existence of but the history surrounding the Goliath's amounted growth? Then, there was also the mystery surrounding where, or how, exactly the spirit had come to find itself within the dispelling form of the Goliath as well as using such remains for its own current form of manifestation, and the possibilities that Gabriel was now coming up with were becoming more and more unsettling with every moment he was left to ponder over such questions. So, before he could let himself get too carried away with that train of thought, he figured it'd at least be prudent to at least try to get _some_ information out of the source itself before he could further lose himself in his' musings and hopefully the feminine spirit would be forthcoming in her responses to him, so he had to take care in how, along with what, he would choose to ask her.

"Exactly who, or rather what, are you?" Gabriel asked calmly, unable to keep a small tone of curiosity from leaking out as he did so, a fact which he sincerely hoped the being would overlook.

Though his' hopes were dashed as the manifestation's eyes crinkled further, if it were possible, signifying that whatever grin it had otherwise been sporting up until this point had now expanded into a full-on smile. Hopefully that would mean it would be a little more at ease around him and it'd become more willing to continue interacting with him. She did, however, take a few moments for herself before answering his' query at last, though not in the way he was expecting.

" _ **That may be a little difficult for me to answer. You nor any other soul that exists today would have no understanding of who I am and there is not nearly enough time for me to give you an explanation as to why. And as for exactly 'what' I am, the shorthand, if unfulfilling, answer for that would be… something more."**_ She said elusively, though it did carry with it a sort of subtle sense of playfulness and he felt that was as much as he was going to get out of her in terms of identity. In spite of that, he didn't let that vague response discourage him as he briefly regained himself and further went on with his' line of questioning.

"Something more? In terms of what, exactly?"

She again took a moment to process that question, as if its very nature carried with it a thousand interpretations and she was simply sifting through the broad meaning of such a question for an appropriate answer to give, one which would hopefully lead the human to ask both himself and her the right questions.

" _ **In a broad sense, it could simply stand to mean 'something more than what you see before you'. But, I suppose a more fair explanation to give would simply be that exactly who and what I am is merely just outside of your current grasp of understanding at the moment and perhaps, in due time, you may find such answers out for yourself."**_ She said elusively, that same, constant sense of playful evasiveness still remaining perpetually present as she continued to speak, and would more than likely remain that way for the rest of the conversation.

Still no closer as to the identity of the entity before him, Gabriel couldn't help but feel the least bit uneasy at the veil of obscurity and mystery she seemed to be keeping, as if revealing even the least bit of her true nature would release complete and utter calamity upon the world, where it would do good for neither her nor anyone else. So, feeling he would get no further on that particular line of questioning, he left whatever thoughts about that particular topic simmer in the back-burner of his' mind while he went on to ask his' next question to the manifestation.

"Alright, if you wish for your true identity to remain a secret then I won't argue against it. But, what does pique my curiosity is, if you wish to keep your true self from being known unto me then why reveal yourself now, to me of all people? What is it that you want here?" He asked briskly, showing that if he did not receive some answers, _valid_ answers, then the conversation would quickly lose its sense of civility, Gabriel no longer retaining the same sense of patience he once had due to the long day's series of events and mild frustrations leading up to this point.

However, if the woman did in fact notice his' sudden change in demeanor and tone, she didn't let it show on her face, as much as could be seen of it, as she kept her smile calm and patient as she went on to answer him.

" _ **Well, if I were to be honest, that question can only be answered in two, complementary parts, both of which are fairly obvious by this point and you have already come to figure out on your own, at least to some cursory degree of understanding. First, the reasoning for my appearance here was to simply examine, first-hand, the events surrounding the final fate of one of my most grand creations. And two, because I know that out of all the powers, mystical or partisan, that exist in this world, there is only one, of which was only recently introduced, in particular that could achieve this all on their own on such short notice: you."**_ She said, her tone changing to that of half-admiration, half-admission, as if she herself had just let him on a suddenly new secret that only she seemed to know of and that alone portrayed something all the more dire with the implications it suddenly presented.

This sudden revelation nearly rocked him, nearly visibly shaking him from his' spot as he fought to keep himself from getting too unnerved. For if what she was alluding to was indeed what he felt that she was then she too knew, through some unknown means, that he was indeed not native to this world. Though, to what extent or means she planned to use such information he didn't know and that fact alone unsettled him far more than anything else. What was it she had planned for him now that she knew of one of his' darker secrets, one which he knew would more than likely alienate him from any and everybody if such a detail were to get out; only trusting Ozpin with such information because he knew the man himself already carried with him a great deal many secrets, some which would more than likely shake the very foundations of the world itself and thus adding one more would barely faze the man, and Gabriel had been more than certain that the Headmaster could be trusted to keep such a personal fact a secret, indefinitely, until a time where it would become necessary or prudent to reveal it, _if_ such a time were to ever come about. Still, how this mysterious figure of all people had come to find such a truth, he didn't know and that too was upsetting in itself.

"And what in particular do you want with me, if I dare ask?" He asked defensively, tensing himself as he prepared to reach for either, or both, his' pocket-watch and/or scythe to counteract whatever the being may prepare to cast upon him, especially since, with how she seemed to speak of and refer to it, she was the creator of the Goliath-and by that logic, all Grimm.

She chuckled, a sound which carried with it a tone of matriarchal warmth while also retaining a certain sense of noble serenity; a sound which seemed to calm and remind him of innocent times years ago, before his' life became what it was and would eventually wind up bringing him all the way to this moment in time, though eventually he refocused back on the present as his' momentary lull in thought passed.

As for the specter, once her moment of amusement at his' befuddlement passed, her stature suddenly grew somber, almost pensive, for the first time since their conversation began and her once wide smile shrank down to a stoic grin as she waved a hand forward, motioning towards him as she spoke.

" _ **I have an offer I wish to present you with, traveler. Would you be willing to hear it?**_ " She asked, her tone as neutral as it was inquisitive as she awaited his' next answer.

Searching her eyes for anything of note, he found nothing which would give him any real cause for concern and so decided to he would at least humor her and at least consider what she had to present him with.

"Fine, I'll hear it. But, before that I wish to know this: How is it that you've come to know about me and where I come from despite the fact that we've never come to meet and why is it that you've decided to let me know that you're privy to such information in the first place? Why do that, what would you gain from it?"

" _ **Well the answer is obvious,"**_ She said, " _ **I simply wished for you to understand the extent of my knowledge of nearly every aspect of Remnant and all of its pieces, only to recognize that you were never a part of the figurative board that is the world until just recently; quite simply, you were an anomaly, one which I kept an eye on through both my agents and constructs as I studied your strengths and nature before realizing that you, amongst all those that exist in this world, would come to be either the element to help bring about the end to all that I've orchestrated thus far or become the catalyst that would make all my visions for the future become a reality. I have only ever a handful a times made direct contact with certain… impartial individuals on the premise that they would come to see the world as I do. And now, despite the risk that you may refuse it, I come to offer you that very same opportunity: to help me carry out this final revolution against the world."**_

"And what is it exactly that you plan to achieve by the end of all this? What is it exactly that you want?" He asked, genuine curiosity marking his' tone.

" _ **Peace, that's all I've ever wanted. And while some of my methods may seem a little less savory than some would prefer, the world's universal label, 'Grimm', being evidence of their reluctance to such means, all that I continue to work toward, even now, is not for sheer destruction, but revelation; Though, some establishments will have to be deconstructed through the plan's course, after all, to make what I plan to happen come true but it will be for the betterment of all sentient beings, Man and Faunus. Let me ask you this, do you know of the true nature of 'Grimm'? Do you really understand how they work and why they were created?"**_

"Well, I'd like to think I have _some_ idea from what I've seen of them. At first glance they seem to be nothing but feral beasts, seemingly motivated by nothing other than the destruction of all living beings and all that they have built as well as invoking and being drawn to any and all negative emotions; whether it is sadness, fear, anger or the like."

" _ **Such a naïve perspective, but one which the world seems to find comfort in for something they do not wish to understand. While much of that may indeed be true, my creations, as rudimentary as they are, were originally intended not to invoke distress, but to seek out its cause and eliminate it whenever it came about; they were supposed to be the Guardians of the world and all its inhabitants, but the world changed them, molded them into its image and eventually their hate came to taint their forms. Now, or I should say for some time, I have come to the realization that the only thing that the world will recognize is force and for that they now suffer because of it. And yet, despite the world seeming to portray itself as unified, never have its inhabitants come to hate each other so, for nothing other than the superficial notions such as that of one's species and appearance, a fact which they themselves are unable to control and are punished for. Even as I try to subtly unite the world against a common foe, such hate has yet to cease to exist."**_ She paused, gathering herself as she suddenly realized her passion had gotten the best of her before continuing on with the conversation in a much more subdued tone. " _ **I don't expect you to understand my motivations nor why I feel the need to do all this and more, my reasons are my own. Only a handful of souls that have ever existed can ever truly understand why I might feel this way, and they were the cause, each and every one of them in their own, unique way. Perhaps, in time, if you came to join me on my endeavor, you might come to know that final part about me, if proven trustworthy enough to earn such keep. But, no one, not even those who say they serve me, have yet earned that privilege. You are different-not motivated by selfish desire like all the rest, yet the power you hold would already have begun to taint a weaker soul and yet you remain irreproachable."**_ She elaborated before her tone suddenly changed to one of both finality and imploration, something which would utterly shock him.

" _ **I ask for you to join me, Traveler. So that together we can help bring about an end to all this suffering, to make it all worth something. So that by the end of it all there will be no more anger, no more pain. No. More. Sadness. Please, help me achieve this."**_ At this point, the eyes which had for so long been fixed with both glee and a sense of aspiration now changed to a drastically different look which now portrayed equal parts hope and sincerity. And as he saw this, he thought to himself if he could really bring himself to turn aside from this passionately-genuine offer. And, despite the power which he could see lying behind those piercing, red eyes, he could also see the vulnerability, desperation and suffering which lay at their center.

Whatever had happened to bring this person to this point to use whatever abilities she had at her disposal to create something as controversial as the Grimm, and while he certainly couldn't begin to even judge her for what she felt she needed to do, not until he well and truly understood her, he couldn't help but admire her for her determination to do something about the state of the world and how it operated. But, the thing was, was that he knew that he couldn't condone such use of force and terror on what were, for the most part, innocent people, ignorant to the ways of the world as they blindly followed the crowd-mentality that existed around them as well as the rules, regulations and customs imposed upon them, for only so many were strong enough to go against the flow of the tide while trying the change the views of the people around them for the better. Thus, bringing himself back to the thought of where exactly he stood on her offer, he now found himself in the precarious situation of deliberating over which course he would go along with: Whether he would go with the oh-so-divisive 'the ends justify the means' course and join her cause to create a final fate that not even he could fathom for the most part or go with the safer, alternative route of establishing peace in a way only a white-knight-hero could; but, despite his' appearance, Gabriel was no white knight, he did not see his' opponents and point at them and suddenly declare them to be evil instead of simply misguided or misinformed. He didn't happen upon a seemingly stranded girl on the side of the road and proclaim them to be the innocent damsel-in-distress they appeared to be rather than some part of a ploy meant to catch unwary travelers. The world just wasn't that black and white, despite all the ways in which we consider it to be, for each and every person is just that, Human: As liable to be as righteous as they are to be corrupt, the only difference being their own motivations and how they chose to achieve them; Desperation alone could turn even the most pure and selfless of people into someone who would be willing to commit some of the worst atrocities imaginable-all with the best of intentions at heart and the world would be none the wiser as to the reasons why. And as such, everyone was unique, despite what some cynics would make you believe, and was equally capable of committing acts of both great good or great evil, and the only difference would be as significant as a flip of a coin.

Perhaps, Gabriel would sometimes muse to himself, had he been even a slightly more different soul than he was now, he might've come to be a super-villain. And knowing that, he couldn't come to fault this feminine-figure standing before him for trying to achieve what she felt needed to be done, for as he stared deep into the windows of her soul, he saw some of his' own self being reflected back into him.

And after many, desperate seconds of thought and contemplation as his' mind and body warred with itself, he made one of the most difficult decisions he'd ever been faced with in his' life and he gave her his' answer at last.

"I… I can't. Not like this. I'm… I'm sorry, but I cannot in good conscience go along with that. Willfully going along blindly with you just for the sake of the greater good, where would the line be drawn through all that? What would you have me overlook just for the sake of accomplishing your goals? No, despite all that I can see of you and hazarding an understanding of why you wish the world to be so for all that it has wrought upon you, it isn't within me to lay my own will over others to determine a fate to which they are forced to endure. I am no God, and for that I will not commit anything which I would expect others to excuse that I myself would not be willing to forgive. That is my decision, I'm sorry." There was a solemn tone in his' voice as he spoke this, and as he stared into the being's visage as it gazed back into his' own, he could feel only guilt for denying her, knowing that refusing to go with her vendetta would now make them unwilling enemies.

Her eyes turned downcast, turning her gaze asunder and instead staring into the ground as she recognized his' answer. It was not an answer she was unfamiliar with, over the course of her life she had long been familiar with the idea of rejection, for the world was in no short supply of that, but to have a someone she felt could well and truly consider her as something more than just another antagonist, the pain of his' refusal was almost crippling as the sensation washed coldly over her. Not because they were in any way familiar or close, for they had only just met after all, but because of their somewhat kindred spirits she felt she finally had someone else in this world that could come to see it as she had, and not just use the opportunity she presented to mold the world in a way they wished for their own personal gain. So, as the icy feeling of refusal flowed over her was it suddenly replaced with a bitter resentment, a feeling she had only felt once before in a time so very long ago by someone else she felt that she could trust, and it had been that feeling alone which had started this pursuit and driven her to this point, only for it to be renewed by another she thought could come to realize her plight.

" _ **So that's your answer, then? You will let fear stay your hand? Do you dread so much the idea of having to sacrifice but only a small part of yourself to help this world realize itself? Does the thought of taking on this sense of responsibility really petrify you so? Or are you just frightened of the power you would gain from it? Are you worried, perhaps, of what you might turn into if you followed my course? Answer me!**_ " She demanded as she looked back up at him, a sense of betrayal once again making itself known within her.

"No! I'm troubled by what ends you're willing to go to make this reality of yours happen! Who are you to torment the world just for your own ambitions?! Just how much are you truly willing to sacrifice?!" He accused, visibly quaking in steadily building outrage, for the answer that was always given in these scenarios always seemed to be the same.

" _ **How dare you!**_ " She gasped, infuriated. " _ **You have no idea what I've had to face, all that I've seen and experienced in this broken world of ours! You have no right to judge me, none! And if you did know anything about me then you would truly understand why it is that I'd be willing to sacrifice the whole world to save it from the corrupt grasp of Men and Faunus alike! And here I come to offer you the chance to remain free of all that blame and to contribute towards a world of lasting peace! Your naiveté and reluctance to act in full blinds you to the possibilities of such a future, I should have known better than to hope that a Man could come to see such potential, even one as impartial as you! I had hoped you would have been different but it seems that you are just like all the rest, just another so called 'Hero'…**_ "

It was at this point that the atmosphere around them began to change, wind picking up in intensity as it joined the swirling motion that perpetually remained around the shaded figure as she remain rooted in the remains of the Goliath. Yet, despite the raging winds, Gabriel stayed fixed in his' spot, even as his' mind wavered as he continued to observe the distraught form of the specter, the only thing he could feel beside these raging winds was the cold iciness of remorse as it seeped into him, though the feeling was to soon be compounded further with the woman's ensuing words.

" _ **With you, things might have been different, but such prospects are now fleeting because of your hesitation and doubt. And for that the world will now continue on its course and burn, whether by its own hands or my own, and you will now join in its fate as well."**_ She paused, her tone turning colder, more distant, wounded even. _ **"This world did not have to be your grave, traveler, but now that you've found yourself home there, you are now welcome in it. Goodbye...**_ "

And on that last, sorrowful note her manifested body began to fade into the tumultuous form of the vortex surrounding it, where the last thing Gabriel saw of her were those desperate, red eyes that gazed almost regretfully back at him as their glow ebbed and blinked away altogether with one last bat of an eye. And just like that, she was gone…

Yet, even as her form disappeared into the leftover darkness from the Goliath's remains, the gale-force winds did not let up in the least and if anything they seemed to worsen. Now that the specter had disappeared it seemed all sense of control or restraint in the wind's flow had left it as well and now the vortex continued to seemingly spiral out of control, to the point where Gabriel actually began to worry exactly how far of an extent the event was willing to go to and the effects it would leave behind if it continued to increase in intensity.

Though, as he continued to ponder upon this line of thinking, he couldn't help but take notice of the fact that as the perpetually circling winds continued in their motions, a steadily rising rhythmic droning/swooshing sound began to emanate from the developing phenomenon. And, despite presuming the circling forces were uncontrolled, the diameter of the base of the steadily building whirlwind never seemed to exceed that of the actual depth/length of the Goliath itself and the only real indicator as to its growth came not from an increase in its width but rather its height as it steadily circled into the atmosphere above and into the sky, creating a narrow tower of black wind.

From his' spot along the ground some distance away from the actual event, Gabriel jabbed the handle of his' scythe into the ground and used it to help hold himself in place as to not fall over, his' cloak flapping about him all the while; Though, he wasn't particularly worried about the wind dragging him away into their currents as, of this moment and from what he could tell of it forthcoming, they weren't nearly powerful enough to feasibly lift him off his' feet.

As the moments passed, the towering winds only continued to grow in their journey to touch the sky and only a minute later it seemed as if it had reached its goal, as only a minute later after the event had started in its wayward course into the heavens, they finally reached cover of low-hanging clouds some hundreds of feet into the air. And, as expected, once the raging spiral of wind reached the docile, airborne pockets if moisture did they too gather the wafting essences of the clouds around them as they drifted and encircled the top edge of the blackened column before being drawn in entirely into its black depths.

This event continued for some indeterminate, if ephemeral, span of time where more and more clouds further along the edge of the column's event horizon began to be drawn into its vicinity. Then, seemingly as soon as the entire event had started, the column's growth had ceased entirely, passing just over the cover of clouds around it. Despite this, the tower had yet to recede in the slightest, only seeming to stagnate in its increase in altitude while leaving its rotation seemingly untouched for the moment.

Then, almost at once, it began to dissipate.

Where the once-strong winds of the towering, black tornado had once been, air began to occupy its space. Even as the black winds continued on unwaveringly in their sustained sense of direction, it seemed that the bonds that once held the pillar together had, seemingly all at once, gave out for no apparent reason. And now, despite the winds remaining determined to carry on in their course, without their unseen-bonds to hold them they all began to go wayward where they all individually began to disappear into the atmosphere surrounding them, each passing moment allowing more and more of the once-proud pillar of darkness to fade away into obscurity.

And yet, only a minute later after this final stage in its short cycle of existence had begun, where there had once been both a towering force and an equally magnificent site of the Grimm's collapsing remains seemingly only dust and echoes from the site's roaring winds was left to mark where it once stood; a black smudge along the ground where the Goliath once existed and a brief flurry of wind sweeping that peculiar area in an arc along the ground before leaving the area in absolute stillness once more.

Observing the whole event, Gabriel finally released some of the tension on his' grip of the weapon embedded into the ground before plunging it back out almost effortlessly now that the small-scale crisis was over, and with it he was left only with the same feeling of numbness and sense of taciturn from before the event started.

Now that he had some peace and was left with his' thoughts, Gabriel could only wonder to himself if it really was the 'right' choice for him to pick the safe, optimistic option of continuing on as is and doing what he could for the world now that he was on the way to becoming a fully-trained huntsman, for surely all that training and experience in the world would mean something, right? Still, even if nobody else would tell him, he could tell that even an ambiguous route such as joining the shadowed-figure on their vendetta might have been filled with _some_ promise, with the knowledge and capabilities such a figure had to be able to create an entire race of subservient creatures, no matter how vicious they seemed to be, the both of them in league with one another might have been all but unstoppable. But, like the figure's departing words had said, '…such prospects [were] now fleeting…'

Still, he had made his' decision and was relieved at no longer having the pressure from having to choose over one half of his' character that wanted absolute solutions to a problem only an antagonist of the world could grant and the other half of him that wished to explore the potential this world and its inhabitants had as they created their own future, for better or for worse. And at the end of the day, despite his' regrets, there wasn't anything else that could be done and so he resolved himself to continue along with this choice and the course it would have him follow.

And so, going along with that last train of thought, he once again made his' way towards the ruins where he would hopefully find whatever relic(s) he would need in order to advance through this initiation and whatever else may lay lie beyond that.

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 **A/N: Short chappie for you guys, but I kinda wanted to split the chapter out a bit since the next part wouldn't really match with the title, and theme, of this chapter. So, like this chapter, it shouldn't be too much longer until the next chapter is released… maybe. Anyway, love you all and looking forward to any feedback you're willing to give.**

 **This is The Brutal Legend, signing off and logging out.**


	12. A final, bitter Errand

**Disclaimer: Do not, will not and cannot own RWBY. That is all… What are you still doing here? Stop snooping around and get back to the story already…**

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"I don't care to be the best at anything: to be the fastest runner, the strongest fighter or the brightest of minds; those roles can be filled by those more capable than I. No, I only wish for two things: To be the wisest person that I can be and to be capable enough to face whatever is set out before me. I'm not doing any of this for recognition or any sort of personal vendetta or to advance some cause, I'm doing this because nobody else is willing to shoulder the burden of the world's future upon their shoulders, and even if it means I might fail, I have to at least try."-G.V.H.

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 **(Sometime later, Location-Temple ruins)**

Traveling along towards his' inevitable destination, Gabriel couldn't help but notice that it seemed that his' encounter with the Goliath had dragged him farther away from the ruins than he figured, as it took him a good, few minutes to reach the site from the Goliath's final resting place where he had initially started; having felt no real reason to be in a rush and use his' ability of flight since the moment of danger had already come and gone. But, at last, he finally reached his' destination and as he looked over what was left of the structure that now made up the ruins he was glad to note they had fared fairly well not only throughout the ages but seemed to be unaffected by the peripheral aftershocks and tremors the Goliath may have made since its initial appearance.

Wandering onto the paved grounds which served as the foundation for the structure, Gabriel took a look at the local scenery. Despite landing near this section of the woodlands when he encountered both Weiss and Jaune, he hadn't really had the time to really examine the features of this place and now that he seemed to have the time, he took the moment to look the area over.

On either side of him he could see the crumbling walls of what once may have acted as the boundaries of the location, no wider than say fifty or so feet apart from one side to the other. From what he could see of the disheveled walls and area around him, he figured it to be some sort of circular temple of sorts, though no roofing existed on the structure to identify whether it had ever been an enclosed space or simply, like the famous monument 'Stonehenge', was an open structure which followed the constellations or other astrological bodies of this world; supporting this fact laid also within the foundation of the temple itself, as they seemed to be engraved with some type of cryptic runes arranged in some sort of symmetrical array of patterns, which, upon further inspection, reminded Gabriel more of a curling flower of sorts than anything astrological. While obviously the building was far beyond its prime, the stone and other natural materials which constituted the temple seemed to have served as an effective means of preservation as even centuries later the structure still, for the most part, stood proud and intact and would more than likely remain that way for some time to come; perhaps even outliving even him and any sort of legacy he would ever leave behind in this place.

While several large pillars supported both the walls and the curved upper section of the structure, one of the more fascinating details that he could see were the nearly two dozen equidistant pillar-like platforms which dotted along the interior perimeter of the open structure. As he walked forward and inspected one of them he could see that each of them only stood at a measly four feet tall. Strangely, the one he was at still held a peculiar artifact he'd never have expected to see in an ancient place like this: A chess piece; the one he was looking at in particular being the black pawn which stood along the outermost part on the right side of the temple, that particular side hosting the rest of the black pieces of the set while the other side held an array of gold-colored pieces, respectively. And, while many of the pieces had already been taken, more than likely by Jaune and the rest of the people he had come to encounter during this initiation along with any other people who had gotten to this area beforehand. He continued to inspect the area, traveling further along the right side of the structure as he traced along the arranged set of black pieces, each post he passed containing another, unique piece of the household-name board game, none of them particularly grabbing his' attention or interest as he gazed at each one minutely. Though, this changed when he finally reached the innermost end of the circular chamber, where he encountered the final, most critical piece of the set: The Black King.

He took several moments to ponder the piece and its meaning to him. While it did indeed serve as one of the most valuable pieces of the game and its uses were varied and quite tactical if used in the right way, especially with its freedom to move and act as it may, a property shared and exceeded only by the 'Queen'. And it was that connection that had drawn him towards the piece in the first place.

And so, almost by instinct, he went and raised his' hand forward to reach for the piece. Further and further his' hand went and just when he had his' fingers curled around the piece to grasp it, he faltered. For seemingly no particular reason, he uncurled his' gauntleted fingers from around the inanimate object and stepped away from the artifact.

As he pondered further along the meaning of the piece, the reason he had relinquished his' desire to take the piece simply came down to this idea: By taking any piece along one of these platforms, for whatever whim or reason that one would have to choose any one in particular, one would not only just be accepting that piece's likeness into themselves and whatever role they would come to play in the future, but by taking it one would unwittingly be acknowledging themselves as just another aspect of the game, where they were to become another element to be used by an architect as a means to a victory. And, while life itself did seem a lot more intricate and complex than that, and perhaps he had simply been overthinking this one aspect of the test, he couldn't help but feel that choosing any one of these artifacts wasn't what fate had in store for him; that with him being an outsider himself, it wouldn't be fair for either him or the world to add himself as just another piece of the game. Though, exactly what role he would come to play in the approaching events throughout Remnant, he would more than likely never fully come to know.

As he backed away some steps away from the relic, not paying any particular attention as to exactly how far he was going, Gabriel then began to worry about the implications of another facet of the test. For if he didn't take the item, or any other for that matter, from the pedestal and bring it back with him, then how else was he going to get through the initiation without following its main objective. And, if there indeed was some alternative means or exception for him to take, then why wouldn't he be allowed to know about it beforehand? And why did only _he_ feel this way about it, surely nobody else was having this same issue, right?

Such lines of thought were broken once his' back collided with a solid, abdomen-height structure. As he stumbled to right himself, both his' hands reached back to grip the smooth, flat edges of whatever had stopped him, the added stability from the action allowing him to stop himself short of falling over from the small disturbance. An instant after righting himself, Gabriel leaned himself forward before turning to see what it was that stalled him from his' thoughts. And what he saw only brought forth further questions for him to ask about this already chaotic test.

While many of the columns holding the artifacts were laid around the interior perimeter of the temple, what stood before him seemed to be yet another example of such, though instead of it being placed along the curve with the rest, this single post stood at the center of the engraved foundation of the temple and in the open area which the temple's walls surrounded. How he had come to miss it in the first place he didn't know, though the answer to that might've been that he might have just mistook it for one of the other pillars in the area in his' brief glance towards the 'white' side of the board-pieces in the area. Another weird detail that Gabriel picked up on was that, if its appearance was anything to go by, it seemed to have been more recently carved and put together than all the others that surrounded it, _much_ more recently, as if it had been put in place specifically for something, or someone, else in particular… someone like him.

And, most curious of all, was instead of an artifact or another chess piece being laid down upon the flat face of the post, there laid a single, simple piece of white paper. Picking up the item and inspecting it, Gabriel saw that it had been written, or printed by use of computer, in a neat, cursive script, entirely in black ink; luckily for him, he'd been well-versed in both reading and writing in such a font ever since taking a course back in his' younger schooling days thanks to a particularly harsh teaching instructor. And as he read the note further, he took notice of the clear and evident warning present on the front side of the paper as well as the fact that it had been addressed specifically for him. Hopefully, whatever had been written on the other end had, in accordance with the decree given on the front page of the memo, not been revealed to anyone else within and without the Emerald Forest, though he supposed nobody would be curious enough to risk incurring the academy's wrath, lest all the hard work everyone had put in just to get to this point end up all going to waste.

Once he read the first half of the note, he turned the letter over and began reading the contents meant specifically for him on its reverse side.

 _Dear Mr. Van Helsing,_

 _Congratulations for making it to this point! There was never a doubt in my mind that you would succeed in this endeavor, despite my assistant's quite audible doubts and misgivings on the matter otherwise. But that's what makes her effective, I suppose._

 _Now, you may be wondering why it is that I have decided to address to you, in particular, a notice that seems to exclude every other participant in this examination. While in some aspects that may be considered favoritism or some form of partiality towards a certain individual, namely you, that is not for them or anyone other than you or I to object to because of our own respective roles, with me occupying the role as Headmaster and thus having the final say in any and all major decisions within my educational authority and of you playing the part of my protégé, though you are more than welcome to give your own misgivings on the matter after the fact. But, now that I have my introduction out of the way, we can get started on informing you of your own, unique task which I have laid before you in the trials ahead._

 _But, before we get any further, I am more than certain I have neglected to inform you of said aforementioned task prior to you joining along with the rest of your classmates, but this singular assignment was of the utmost importance and the level of discretion surrounding it needed to match it as well, and so under careful guidance and surveillance, this notice has been laid here and monitored since the trial's launch and now, other than I and my assistant, you are the only other soul which has laid eyes on this aspect of the document. By no means is this an excuse for any negligence on my part and perhaps it would have been more beneficial for you to have known the existence of this task and all that it requires of you in person, but there are a great deal many eyes and ears around me who would do all in their power to find whatever secrets, no matter how small, that I hold close to myself that they would come to use for their own, calculative ends and I simply could not risk them learning of the existence of what I have arranged for you to find. Again, if you have any concerns to which you wish to address to me, let me know of them after the fact, though I sincerely hope you are willing to understand my view on the matter. In any case, here is the official introduction into your briefing:_

 _For some time, I have seen a great deal many eager hearts and minds come and go from my service and yet only so many have gone to make me truly proud and retain confidence that the world can and may be saved from this darkness which plagues it. And yet, for all that, only a select few have ever been given the opportunity and honor to take on this role throughout the Academy's history. I am now formally inviting you to take up the position as your class 'Supervisor' and only those who I see are able to fill the model of a paragon are allowed this title. Now, for each and every person who has strived to take up this mantle, each task that has been assigned to them has been unique and different, and that tradition remains, even now. This time, for you, the task I have laid out for you is this: Retrieve the 'Prince' artifact. Now, while that may not seem particularly difficult in itself, its indeterminate location and the means to retrieve it are what make the whole endeavor difficult, because unlike the other artifacts which lay upon the pedestals of the ruins of the temple, this item resides in a rather… unorthodox location. The artifact to which you are to retrieve is located within the Stinger of the matured Deathstalker Grimm located within the tunnels of a nearby cave system, relative to the location where you found this notice (I.E. The Temple ruins); a task which was set in place by none other than our ever-weary coordinator, Ms. Goodwitch, who had used her own, unique set of abilities and talents to restrain the beast while she put the relic in place, just in case you were curious._

 _This undertaking is now yours and I am more than certain the hopes that I have laid in you have not been made in vain. I know you will not let me down, Gabriel. Good luck and good hunting, Huntsman._

 _Sincerest regards,_

 _Ozpin_

 _Headmaster of Beacon Academy._

 _P.S. Please burn or otherwise dispose of this notice through similar means after you have read and memorized this, as I no longer require you to keep or return it along with your artifact and it would do you well if no other individual within, and without, these examinations grow privy to your unique pursuit and wish to take it for themselves or simply keep you from taking it yourself. In any event, that is all that I wished to address to you, Mr. Van Helsing. Best not dawdle any further and get a move on already, time's a wasting. And time waits for no man…_

After having read the note once then twice over, Gabriel sighed to himself before disintegrating the note with but a thought as he remained in his' seated position leaning back against the pillar where he had first gotten the note. Exasperated over what his' superior would have him do to simply proceed with the rest of his' class past this initiation, to him, compared to everything else he had to get done today, the note may as well have been telling him to just do what everyone else was doing. And, while he could most certainly understand what it was Ozpin had asked of him and why he wanted him for the position, he almost couldn't be bothered to do it, just from the sheer incredulity of the secrecy behind it all. Though, whatever reservations he might have had, he put them aside while he dealt with the issue of how he was going to figure out exactly where the Deathstalker had gone and what had became of everyone after their separation, though he was fairly sure they had all managed well enough alone without him.

And so, with another resigned sigh, Gabriel began to push up with his' hands on his' knees as he leaned forward in an effort to stand up. Though, just before he could get up, a sudden, unexpected noise broke through the silence of the area, stilling him in place as he suddenly recognized its tone and came to place its oh-so-familiar source.

"Hi-Yah!" A shrill voice called out, followed immediately by a sudden cascade of dirt and loose stones as the figure that made the noise braced their collision by hooking and imbedding the sharp edge of their weapon into the ground, using their over-sized handle to keep themselves leveraged and upright in spite of their hurried landing. Once the dust settled, the figure hopped off their handle before swiftly pulling their weapon from the earth below them and shaking off the dirt clinging onto it.

Shaking off the dirt and numbness from the collision, the person finally turned to look around the area briefly before catching Gabriel in their peripheral sight sitting off to their right, who was looking at them numbly as he watched the whole occurrence take place in front of him. Though, before he even had the chance to move, the new arrival spoke first.

"There you are! When I saw that dark tower appear out of nowhere I got worried and came over as soon as I could. Are you okay? Where's the giant Grimm? And where did that tornado go?" The voice, now recognized as Ruby's, said as she looked all around the area, keeping a distinct grip on _Crescent Rose_ as she did so, anxiously awaiting her friend's answer.

"Well, the Goliath's been dealt with. Gone, dead, whatever you wanna call it whenever a Grimm's been killed. And the tornado, like you saw, kinda just went up into thin air, it didn't do much of anything at all, really." Gabriel supplied, waving a hand up as he motioned towards the now non-existent phenomenon from his' seated place before leaving his' arm resting on his' knee, where it mirrored his' other arm.

"Wait, what? Really? Wow, that's amazing! I knew you could do it!" She said as she fully turned to face him after her brief search turned up nothing before jumping and pumping a fist into the air in excitement before her attitude sobered as she landed. "But, if that tornado just up and left, then where did it come from in the first place? Did you see where it started or where it might have come from?" Ruby asked curiously, tilting her head to the side slightly as her body unconsciously emphasized the question with her posture.

"I-"

He paused, unsure of what exactly he should or should not tell her. He knew he could trust her implicitly with almost anything since Ruby was one of the most genuine people he knew, but for one he didn't want to worry her with anything that he himself could barely understand and believe himself, and two, he didn't want to implicate her in whatever mess he now found himself in with this mysterious, revolutionary organization that tried to recruit him, at least not before he was certain that she was capable enough to defend herself from whatever they might throw at her. And so, going with the safe option of telling her the truth yet not the whole truth, he could only come to hope he could forgive himself for such deception.

"Yeah, I know where it came from; it drew up from the body of the Goliath as its body gave out and disintegrated. But, because of how powerful and ancient it must have been, I guess the process was a little more dramatic than usual, at least compared to how other Grimm seem to sizzle away."

After hearing what he had to say, Ruby looked at him for a moment, giving him a neutral look as she took in his' response briefly and thought it over before a large smile made its way onto her face. And it was with this happy expression that she trotted over with as she wandered over towards him.

"Okay, then!" She chirped exuberantly. "I'm just glad you're okay! I know you said you were sure you could handle it but I just wanted to make sure you were fine is all." She said to him with obvious concern and relief, respectively, before her tone changed as she continued. "But, now that that's over with, can you tell me how you did it? How was the fight? What weapons did you use? How did the Grimm fight? Tell me, tell me, tell me!" She said with unrestrained excitement, bounding the last few feet between them until she stood just before him, bouncing on her heels in place slightly with eagerness as she hunched over nearly face-to-face with him.

Seeing her close proximity, Gabriel went and reached his' right hand upwards and extended his' pointer-finger forward and poked her in the forehead, pushing her back with it as he made to get up. Ruby, in response, stilled in her excited as she was visibly pushed back by the sudden prod, half-because of the actual force of his' poke while the rest was her body's reflective flinching back from the sudden action, causing her to lean and take a step back while Gabriel slowly stood up.

As he stood, unwary of any indignance Ruby might have felt from his' mild jab at her, he went on to further elaborate on his concerns for the moment.

"Alright, alright, I'll tell you all about it later…" As he said this, she visibly deflated in place, a small whine beginning to make its way up from her throat. Though, before it even had a chance to be let out, Gabriel continued. "But right now I need to ask you about something important. What happened to the Deathstalker that was chasing you guys? I kinda wanted to check it out before I left, see if I could find something interesting from it or the like. Hey, by the way, everyone else made it out okay, right?" He both supplied and asked, looking towards the girl before him for the answers he needed before carrying on with his' course to find his' main objective at the moment.

"Oh," She said, brightening up once again from her once-despondent demeanor. "Yeah, we're all good. Kinda had some trouble finding a way to bring down that Nevermore but me, Yang, Weiss and Blake all worked together to take care of it, it was awesome! I gotta remember to tell you all about it later, you won't believe it! Also, Jaune and them all seemed okay last I saw them, but I didn't stick around to know for sure when I saw the black pillar before I took off and came here. I don't really know what happened to the Deathstalker though. But, like I said, it looked like Jaune and his' group had dealt with it by the time we were finished so one of them should know about what happened to it or where it might've went." She answered innocently, giving him big doe-like eyes as she responded earnestly to his' questions.

Listening intently to her answer, he nodded once as he took in what she had to say and understanding that she hardly knew any more about the matter than he did at the moment, he figured he'd go with the next lead she had presented him with.

"Alright then, so if Jaune and the other three were the ones dealing with the Deathstalker, do you know where I can find them then?" He asked calmly yet quickly, he didn't want to waste too much more time here in the forest, not while there were possibly other Grimm still around to ruin their day; then there was the issue of a time-limit and whether he only had 'til the end of the day, or a time sooner than even that, in order to find his' objective before time ran out.

Ruby was about to give him an uncertain answer as she hadn't seen them since she left, but before she could say anything something caught her attention behind him, causing her eyes to widen noticeably in surprise before she looked back to him and began pointing him towards what she was seeing, causing him to turn around in response. What met his' sight caused him to visibly sag in relief as the answer to his' plea came at last.

In the open expanse of the clearing which once-laid behind him beyond the ruins, Gabriel now faced the suddenly approaching forms of the rest of those he had come to see and meet during this initiation in the Emerald Forest and at its vanguard stood, or rather ran, the familiar form of their friend, Jaune. And eventually, the group finally caught up and jogged to a stop around the conversing duo as they all conglomerated on the paved foundation of the ruins that made up the site of the objective, their breathing labored as they regained their stamina after their not-so-brief run from the arch-way paths near the cliffs, some of them more winded than others-namely, Jaune.

After taking a few moments to gather his' breathing, hunching over with his' hands on his' knees in fatigue while he let his' heart slow, Jaune finally stood up as he recovered before addressing the missing duo now that he finally caught up to their resident runner of the group while everyone else in their group was either still recuperating or looking the area over for danger or anything of interest, aside from the artifacts.

"Ah, glad you decided to wait up, Ruby." Jaune said exasperatedly, waving a hand whimsically in the air as he said this. "Anyhow, I'm glad to see that you're okay, Gabriel. After seeing that scary-looking twister come and go and Ruby running off back over here, I started fearing the worst, but for once I'm glad that I was wrong." Jaune said, grinning as he looked over to his' friend, relieved to see that he seemed no worse for wear since he had last seen him.

"Thanks, Jaune. Glad to know that you care. But, as you can see, I'm just fine." Gabriel responded warmly, giving his' friend an open grin in return before his' face and tone grew serious as his' next words came up. "Hey, so Ruby tells me you guys dealt with the Deathstalker. So, how did that turn out?" He asked, giving his' friend a curious look.

"Oh, yeah!" Jaune said, perking up a bit more as their recently-successful battle came to mind. "It was tough, man. But, you know me, I had it all covered but everyone else wanted to chip in so I let them, you know?" Jaune said, trying to remain suave in spite of their hard-fought skirmish. And yet, even as he kept his' arms locked around behind his' head as he tried to look cool and laid-back, as he saw the disbelieving looks of his' two friends before him and felt the heated sensation of his' teammates glaring at him from behind, he couldn't help but chuckle nervously at being caught in such a blatant fib surrounding the events minutes earlier and thought better of it as he went on to relate what actually happened.

"Ok, ok, fine." He said, bringing his' arms back around in front of him as he nervously wrung his' hands together. "Yeah, so me and my other three teammates all worked together, _equally_ , to beat the Deathstalker and were barely able to beat it by finding a weakness we could use against it. And… if it weren't for them I would've never have gotten out of there alive. So, thanks guys." Jaune said, turning around slightly as he addressed his' peers as they stood slightly out of the way behind him.

At his' truthful admission, the other three's stares softened as they met his' gaze, with Ren giving Jaune an amiable nod in thanks while Nora's ever-present smile seemed to expand to the point where it was absolutely beaming. And as for Pyrrha, she padded on over to the conversing trio before stepping up beside Jaune and laying a hand on his' shoulder and giving it a gentle squeeze and nodded gratefully towards him, a content smile making itself known on her face as she looked at Jaune. In response, Jaune hesitantly reached a hand out over hers as it lay on his' shoulder and patted it before leaving it on hers for a moment. Then, simultaneously, the raised their hands away, though they still gazed at one another for another half-moment before turning their sights away from one other and towards the other pair in front of them.

Seeing the sight but making no effort to acknowledge it, Gabriel just gave Jaune a few, absent nods at hearing his' brief relation of his' team's efforts before continuing on with the conversation.

"Nice job, then. Congratulations. And from the way you make it sound, it sounds like you all actually beat it, not that I'm trying to discredit your guy's achievement or anything, I'm just wondering how you guys did it since earlier it seemed like you guys could barely make a scratch on it, let alone kill it. And, uh, where did you guys end up leaving it?" Gabriel asked, trying to sound dissociative yet trying to maintain a certain sense of rapt curiosity in his' tone as he asked, not that he wasn't actually interested in what Jaune or his' group had to say, but he did have other issues to attend to, after all.

"Oh, no offense taken, man. We are pretty great, after all. Then again, I guess it would all sound pretty hard to believe if you didn't see it with your own eyes, huh?" Jaune said, pausing as he made an obvious show of shining his' nails on his' shirt and blowing on them. "But, yeah, I get what you mean." He said, growing a bit more serious as he continued on to explain a bit more about their encounter. "And, actually, we didn't technically kill it; At least not completely by our _own_ weapons. We actually targeted a weak point on the part between the stinger and its tail, slicing it off and having the stinger fall and lodge itself onto the main body. But, it wasn't enough. Which is why, as soon as that happened, we had Nora launch herself really high into the air and slam her hammer _super_ hard on top of it, like a hammer and a nail, and had finally dug the stinger deep enough into its head/body to kill it. Then, well, it kinda fell down into the canyon we were fighting at since it was standing on the edge of the stone bridge we were going to use to cross the gap that collapsed at the end of our fight; Wait, now that I think about it, how _are_ we going to get across that place anyway? And no, Nora, I've had enough trips from your hammer for today… and tomorrow… actually, just count me out of anything like that for like, forever, alright?" Jaune said, giving Nora an uneasy look over his' shoulder while she returned his' look with her own, teasing yet ever-boisterous grin, which was soon followed by a chuckle from her as she innocently batted her eyes at him, causing him to shiver in place nervously.

'Oh, geez.' Gabriel thought to himself after hearing Jaune's account. 'Well, seems like things are going to be as bothersome as I figured they might be, but it wouldn't be interesting if it were easy now would it?' And with that, he finished off the thought with a tired sigh, though he at least had a solid lead on where to go next. At the very least, he didn't have to battle against another giant Grimm or anything; he _was_ trying to remain positive, after all. Meanwhile, Ruby had been called over by Yang and had went over to talk over something with her sister, Weiss and Blake in private, though it appeared to be that Yang seemed to be just giving her sister a round of applause and praise for her sister's well thought-out plan against the Nevermore, now that they were all together in the aftermath of it all and had the time to do so.

And so, like Ozpin had said in the finishing lines of the note from earlier, opting to not dawdle on the matter any longer, Gabriel went on to ask Jaune the last question left to ask before they could all leave out of there together, though he wouldn't keep them if they really wanted to leave already.

"So, Jaune. Can you take me to the last place you saw the Deathstalker? Please?"

* * *

( **A couple minutes of leisurely walking later, Location-Archways between the Emerald forest and the cliffs leading towards Beacon Academy, Forest side)**

Like earlier, Gabriel now found himself once again calmly treading through dirt-encrusted terrain as he made his' way from one place of significance to another. Near alongside him, the various, other eight people that made up this section of their class all walked together around or beside one another. Along the way, some decided to chat about non-consequential topics and personal matters with those they had come to befriend or had known previously outside of their education while others simply remained quiet, either lost in their own thoughts and passing muses or were simply observing or keeping an eye out on the area around them for danger. Strangely, no threats had come to pass in their outbound trek towards the edge of the forest and all remained idle except for the recently-restored ambience of wildlife all around them now that much of the danger had passed. Still, that calm sense of security had yet to fully settle them and they would choose to remain vigilant, even now, as they made to leave this deceptively-calm forest until they had all fully made it to the safety of Beacon and its warm food, soft beds and hot showers. A more than welcome treatment after everything that had went through that day. Still, they'd wait a minute longer while their colleague, Gabriel, went to check out this last sight on their way out, but not any longer than that, lest their fatigue turn to impatience then to anger if he kept them waiting.

Eventually, everyone arrived towards the battered and collapsed remains of the stone pathways which crossed all along and over the abysmal chasm below. From their spot on the solid foundation that the stone and forest provided, they could all take a look at the damage which had been wrought along the ruins in the area, some of them feeling the slightest bit of guilt as they recalled their own personal actions which ruined this environment while some felt resentment towards the Grimm for damaging yet another part of their ancient history. Still, it couldn't be helped and as soon as those feelings came did they fade away with the realization that all that they could do now was keep moving forward and make the Grimm pay for what had been done both here and everywhere else in the world since they arose.

And so, while everyone else came to a stop some meters away from the edge of the abyss below, Gabriel himself continued on until he stood on the crumbling edge of the stone pathway that Jaune had mentioned the Deathstalker once stood on before falling down to its final resting place, where it would have more than likely have melted away into smoke and ash like every other Grimm of its kind. As he gazed into the fogged emptiness below, Gabriel casually kicked a small, rock-sized chunk of debris with his' foot down into the abyss before him, where it fell aimlessly towards the unseen ground below while he crouched down to listen for the sound of it clattering to reach his' ears.

'One-one thousand, two-one thousand, three-one thousand, four-' He counted along mentally as he waited for the rock to reach rock-bottom, and as he expected, after four long seconds the sound of the rock impacting against the ground reached his' ears as it echoed out of the chasm upwards. With this in mind, he began to figure out the calculations for his' imminent actions ahead when he'd go down to search for his' artifact. Though, just as he figured the numbers and guestimations out for his' next course of action, Jaune and Ruby strolled up behind him as he stood along the precarious edge of the broken pathway above the daunting emptiness below.

"Hey, dude. Be careful where you're standing! You're right at the edge; you could slip if you're not careful. And I'm not sure if we exactly have a way to get you out of there if you survived the fall and were to be stuck down there. It could be a while 'til help arrives so why don't you step back away from there before something happens, alright man?" Jaune said, uneasily reaching a hand out in caution as if trying to guide his' friend back to their spot a couple feet back from the edge into the foggy chasm he had already been acquainted with some minutes earlier. Ruby, meanwhile, looked over the area uneasily, now not quit as brave to cross the area now that she had a chance to examine the perils the area held for them that were one unfortunate step away, now that nothing was trying to kill them and all.

"Hmm." Gabriel affirmed noncommittally before he stood up, though he made no other move to get away from the canyon's edge as he stood along its cusp. Upon seeing the stilled form of their friend, Jaune and Ruby began to worry over his' lack of action and began to worry that he might've frozen from fear, perhaps from some unrealized disinclination towards heights or something much worse. And, upon thinking this, they began to move forward to help bring their unmoving classmate away from what may have been tormenting him before a suddenly raised hand from him caused them to stop in their tracks, leaving them wondering what it was that was keeping them.

A moment later as he brought his' arm back down once he was sure the other two refrained from following him any further, Gabriel turned to look at them over his' left shoulder.

"Don't worry, I heard you, Jaune." He said smoothly in a placating manner, hoping to appease their unvoiced concerns they probably had as he stood at his' precarious spot. "But, this is the part where you'll, once again, have to take me at my word. I gotta go check something out, but don't worry! I'll be back in a few minutes, ten tops. I promise." And as he said this he turned his' gaze back down towards the unseen item of importance waiting for him at its resting place in the abyss below.

"Gabe, just what are you-" Jaune began to voice aloud, confusion making itself visible along his' face while his' stature remained uncertain. Ruby, herself, appearing to be in much the same state as well as she watched on as her friend continued to remain idle for the moment.

And with that, taking a deliberate step forward, Gabriel tilted forward before allowing gravity to take hold of him. A moment later, he went plummeting down into the chasm feet-first, disappearing from sight in an instant.

"Gabriel!" Both Jaune and Ruby cried out in alarm before bolting towards the edge that once held their friend as they looked and tried to reach down with one of theirs arms to where he fell, only to see the same sight which made up the rest of the canyon that lay all around them, their friend seeming to have all but vanished from existence, and with him their peaceful state of mind as well. Where the only thing they could do now was wait…

* * *

( **Location-Canyon, Rock Bottom** )

'One-one thousand, two-one thousand…' It was these thoughts that Gabriel was left with in his' wayward descent into the obscurity the fog presented him with, where the only thing he could see as he fell was the nose right in front of his' face, or rather on it, and the only thing he could rely on to tell him how far he had fallen and how much further he still had to go was his' own sense of count. And, after what felt like an eternity, he finally reached the next number in the sequence.

'Three-one thousand…'

Reaching that point, he activated his' armor's wings and in an instant they were already on his' back, set in mid-flap as they made to slow his' descent.

'Four-one thousand...'

Then, at last, his' body finally came to a halt as his' wings now steadily held him in place. Now that the risk of meeting a grisly end had passed, he had his' wings slow in their steady rhythm as well as decreasing the intensity of their thrusts against the air, allowing him to slowly and steadily drift down further and further into the abyss below.

'Down, down, down amongst the dead and those that die… down, down, down towards the place in which they lie…'

He mused to himself, paraphrasing part of an old sea shanty he had once heard in his' old, and only, line of work as he drifted further and further down into the unseeing depths. And it was as he finished this line that he felt before he saw the solid foundation which had for seemingly so long, or rather longer than he would've liked or anticipated, been eluding him. Upon touching down on the dampened soil that made up the area around him, he let the wings which had been so faithfully keeping him afloat for these last few moments disappear, their purpose no longer needed for the moment. It was at this time that Gabriel suddenly realized that he had another unforeseen issue which he had failed to take into account before he arrived.

While much of the area was indeed blanketed in a thick and heavy fog, obscuring all but the ground and air around him as he gazed in each direction, the area itself was only barely visible through the sun's light as it made its way from the surface and down into this lonesome place. And so, left with only the same level of visible light that'd come from wandering around on a foggy day with overcast weather, he now found his' own sense of hope for finding his' objective slowly waning as he desperately began sweeping the area over, hoping to find some indication that his' journey down here hadn't been made in vain.

'Come on, I know it has to be around here somewhere!' Gabriel thought, worry beginning to creep its way into his' psyche. Meanwhile, wayward thoughts in the back of his' mind also began to arise as he thought about the situation with his' friends, who were likely to begin assuming the worst if he didn't return quickly, where they were more than likely to try and risk themselves in order to try to find and rescue him.

As a minute passed and he truly began to worry as he turned and turned, wandering this way and that, looking for what was basically his' ticket into Beacon, something finally caught his' eye. Following where he last saw it, Gabriel swiveled in place before finally facing the general direction where he caught the glimpse of… whatever it was that he had seen. Yet, when nothing else seemed to happen and he figured that it was either his' imagination or his' desperate mind making him see things, he once again caught sight of the strange, visual anomaly.

Despite the thickened haze which surrounded and obscured his' sight, a dull glimmer shined through the fog like a lighthouse through a storm, and it was all that he needed, or had, to restore his' sense of hope again. And thus, with some sense of where he needed to go, Gabriel began to wander in the direction where the gleam seemed to be coming from, the small twinkle it made appearing and disappearing with every motion his' body made as he walked towards it.

As he carried on forward, the cold grip from the unfavorable lack of sunlight in combination with the dewy atmosphere around him began to create a chill which slowly but steadily crept up on him, whatever bit of insulation his' armor and cloak may have had soon proved to be all but useless in both keeping the cold out and his' body heat in and he knew that if he didn't reach the object soon and leave, he'd have to rely on more… drastic means to overcome what would soon be hypothermia, probably through using one of his' unique powers which might allow him to ignore the conditions of the environment entirely… or simply transmutate a thick, wool robe or something into existence to wear over his' entire body, armor and all; it all depended on how dramatic he felt like being, really.

Fortunately, before he had the chance to even really consider either of those desperate options, it seemed to look like he was nearly there, based on how intense the gleam seemed to appear with every step he seemed to make. Lucky for him, his' estimate proved true as, through the range of vision allowed to him through the fog, he finally caught sight of what had been eluding and teasing him not only since his' expedition into these depths, but ever since he had first become privy to what it was that he was to look for from the note meant for him. And, as he laid eyes upon what had been plaguing him through this unpleasant, isolated place, he knew his' hopes had been well-founded, something which was beginning to look like a pattern considering how well everything seemed to be going today; which only made him the slightest bit worried as he wondered if and when all that good fortune would have to be paid back and how it would take such payment from him, if it were ever to come about at all. Then again, he might've been worrying over nothing, and it might do him well just to not think about it at all and just take it for what it was-a gift. And like the saying goes: "Never look a gift-horse in the mouth.", though as one very wise gentleman once said once he heard the phrase said aloud, he countered the old saying with simply: "Tell that to the Trojans.", and it could be figured that it'd be best to take these sorts of sayings with a grain of salt.

As he unintentionally began to muse to himself, Gabriel continued to close in on the object which lay on the ground in front of him before stopping at and having to look up to it in order to fully consider its entire height; Despite the minute shine which the item seemed to give off through the fog, that aspect of its shine alone seemed to bely its size, as even as it laid imbedded into the ground at an off-kilter angle the stinger seemed to dwarf even him, and he was by no means of imagination a short guy. Looking at it as it tapered off to a curved point, the golden, crystalline object seemed to stand around perhaps twenty to twenty-five feet in height, accounting for its missing length hidden in the sodden dirt it was minutely buried in, and despite all that it would've went through in not only the battle with Jaune and his' team, its fall along with its body into this canyon as well as the other, countless skirmishes the creature must have faced in its time, the entire structure of the thing seemed to have remained wholly intact despite all that it must've went through; perhaps if he had been a jeweler and had something he could use to closely inspect the grade of the object he might've seen both its grade of worth as well as the level of faults laid into it at a microscopic that he figured were most certainly there, though through his' naked eye he could really see no faults along its surface at all, despite his' ever-increasing scrutiny on the object.

Still, it wasn't the stinger he was supposed to be looking for, or even _at_ really, and once he remembered that point after his' momentary lull in focus, he once again closed the distance between him and the item further as he went to carry out his' main focus for being down here; despite this, he couldn't help but minutely notice the black, scorch-mark-esque stains adorning all around the base of the item as well as the ground seemingly around it, proving that this truly was the final resting place of the Deathstalker that Jaune had mentioned earlier, and by the looks of what was left, it had evaporated long before his' arrival, or more accurately, shortly after Jaune's group's victory had sent it careening down here.

Reaching the stinger, which seemed more reminiscent of a monolith than anything belonging to any sort of animal or creature, Gabriel gazed upon the structure's surface, looking the item over for any practical means outside of pure force to break it open. Yet, as he gazed at the stinger's same, unchanging hue and as its reflection mirrored back to him the same face and body he had been acquainted with all his' life, he knew that if there were ever a practical weakness to be found in this singular part of the Deathstalker's anatomy, he would not be the one to find it nor would he be able to really find it in the time he had left to search the item over. Still, he had his' own ways to break this shell open, though if only it were that simple. Obviously, it wasn't just the deconstruction of the crystalline structure itself that he needed to handle, but the retrieval of the precious item that was held within as well, though hopefully he wouldn't encounter any sort of toxic venom in his' pursuit to claim it. But, that left him with the obvious issue of how he was supposed to achieve this, for he could easily use his' scythe to break the whole thing apart, or into chunks at least, though he wasn't sure of exactly where the item he was supposed to bring back with him was located within the stinger and how big that imbedded item may have been; for all he knew, he could easily slice the relic apart in a dozen different ways merely in his' quest to free it. And it was obvious that any firearms he had wouldn't work against the crystallized stinger either, no matter how powerful he considered them to be now that they used Dust to propel and power them, as there must have been countless examples of hapless fools as they tried to break the Stinger apart with their own, hand-made weapons, and as he looked at the intact form of the stinger he had surely known that all those efforts had utterly failed. The same could've have said for his' guitar, as most of his' specialized attacks were made to affect either the living or reduce non-sentient obstacles into smoldering ruins, even the standard lightning which the guitar casted whenever it was plucked at random would more than likely have the same results as his' scythe and destroy whatever was held within the solid structure of the stinger as it melted away; even using his' disintegrative powers by hand seemed like a risky maneuver, where he could just as easily grasp and melt away his' item of interest in his' attempt to retrieve it from its confines, leaving him further in the conundrum he now found himself in.

Thus, this obvious question once again made itself prevalent within his' thoughts and he could do nothing to quell its urgency as it rebound within his' mind and the only thing he could do was repeat it to himself, as if reciting it would yield some unnoticed means to solve it: How was he to safely get the artifact out? As the moments passed and the only answer which he could come up with was to simply risk it and try to be careful how he sliced the Deathstalker's non-living organ apart, he stopped, realizing a suddenly obvious means to a resolution, one which made him smack himself on his' forehead from the sheer simplicity of the solution and how he had seemingly overlooked it in his' recounting of his' equipment earlier.

Long before his' arrival here on Remnant, far before his' journey traveling through other worlds and making his' own story and far before the presence of his' abilities and the meeting with the one who bestowed them onto him, during the early, normal part of his' life, Gabriel was given a gift. Now, when one considers what a gift is, some would come to think of it as something sentimental to either the giver or the recipient themselves or would be an item or service of great value to the receiver, like a car or a reservation for a bath and spa establishment of some sort. But, hardly is it ever the case where the present serves both examples yet neither at the same time; quite simply, it was something practical that the recipient could easily use at a moment's notice, something they hadn't asked for nor would've expected to receive and was something that meant quite a bit from the giver, who in this case was Gabriel's father. Now, Gabriel's father was a man of few words and even fewer tells, but he was also a man of great ambition and with that drive he wound up making a great deal many connections through his' efforts. Through means to which the man, and God himself, only know, Gabriel's father came to acquire a rather peculiar, if incredible, item of interest from one his' middle-ground friends who gave it to him after having no apparent use for the item himself. And, having the item in his' custody, knowing the dangerous new world Gabriel would find himself in at his' first job with being a crewman aboard a salvage company vessel, Gabriel's father sought fit to give his' beloved son one last token of his' unspoken affection just before he left on his' seaward journey, feeling that the gift would serve his' son well if a time ever came that he'd need to use it; for either utility or protection, respectively.

Before everything changed and when Gabriel was just another guy in the world that we all know, love and hate, he was given a Kukri knife just after his' seventeenth birthday, shortly after his' graduation from highschool. Since then, it has only ever seen seldom use, the last time being when Gabriel found himself stranded in a tropical forest on an island in the Caribbean, an experience which felt like it had happened a lifetime ago. And now, its presence seemed to be all but a Godsend for the young traveler, for its services would once again be required for a job that only it seemed capable of solving.

Getting over his' moment of self-loathing and nostalgia, Gabriel straightened back out as he let out a sigh from the frustration he was feeling before reaching a hand up towards the chest plate of his' armor. Along the outside of it, and easily within his' line of sight, much to his' further chagrin, a sheathe rested, carrying with it the knife to which Gabriel sought out. Turning his' hand over and nearly making a fist, Gabriel gripped around the upward-pointing handle of the knife before sliding it smoothly out of its case in one swift motion, an audible sound of metal scraping against its covering ringing out minutely throughout the area around it. Now, with the knife in hand, Gabriel understood that the metal alloy which the knife consisted of would obviously be of no use to him, at the moment serving far less of a feasible solution for his' problem than his' guns, which were just as liable to have their bullets ricochet back into him than break the stinger. Luckily for him, like his' scythe, he just might be able to channel his' unique energy into the weapon, and with the level of dexterity and control it allowed him, he might just have a viable solution to cut the artifact out after all.

Thus, after concentrating for a moment to have the energy flow _around_ the weapon instead of _into_ it and destroying it like anything else, the weapon now carried with it a slick, black sheen of ethereal energy and now, like his' scythe, could easily cut through most anything, or in this case the monolithic stinger standing between him and his' prize.

Brandishing the newly adorned weapon, Gabriel leaned forward and with surgical precision and a steady grip, slipped the knife effortlessly into the crystal, showing that his' last-ditch effort at an idea had indeed been a success. And after allowing that moment of self-achievement to run its course, Gabriel carried on with his' task and began slipping the knife in, withdrawing it and cutting sizeable chunks of the stinger out, pulling them out piece by piece and tossing them onto the cold, unforgiving ground, the atmosphere around him being all but forgotten in the wake of his' newfound determination.

For several minutes this continued, where Gabriel would carefully slip his' knife into the flawless and all but unbreakable surface of the crystalline monolith before cutting a chunk of it out, the process continuing much in the same way since it began, the only alterations being where and how he would cut the pieces out, but in the end the results were all the same and his' destination continued to near with each and every effort he made; The weight of the pieces of the inorganic structure themselves were substantial but overall not all that dense, making the procedure all the smoother as he carried it, and the pieces themselves, out. And, after what seemed like an eternity of surgical-level work and tediousness, but was around perhaps five to ten minutes, Gabriel had come upon a cavity within the large structure at last.

As Gabriel looked into the empty pocket of nothingness at the center of the Deathstalker's stinger, Gabriel felt that it had been the area that once held, or at least channeled, the Grimm's toxic venom but now that the creature was all-but-extinguished, whatever liquid or gas that had once occupied the space had seemingly evaporated along with the rest of the creature's body; or simply drained out of the hole the Deathstalker's tail once connected into before it was severed by Jaune and his group's combined efforts—either option just as likely to be true as the other- for all he knew, perhaps both had happened.

Once he had carved out a solid window that measured about four feet tall and four feet wide, essentially being a square, he placed his' knife back in its sheath once again before hunching over and leaning into the once-closed space as he went to closely examine it. Though, as he got a decent look into the retainer, peering all along the smooth, curving interior wall of the chamber, the only thing that it seemed to hold now was empty space.

At this, fear once again began to wrack his' thoughts, something he was seldom accustomed to, even during his' encounter with the Goliath as well as its master. But, it was obvious that he began to feel this way not only because of the sensitive, crucial nature of this task in itself-where it was quite literally a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity, but also how badly this failure would reflect upon him, deeming him unfit for the role Ozpin nominated him for. And it was this failure, he knew, that would destroy any chance of having a smooth transition in helping those in this world and with that lost opportunity so too would he lose his' chance to help and watch his' friends grow into the people they were meant to be, for better or for worse, and without him there to help guide them who knows what the world would soon turn them into, now that he got a brief glimpse of one of its major players as well as the means they were willing to go to in order to reach their enigmatic goals.

With these thoughts and doubts lingering within his' mind, Gabriel failed to notice his' gaze turn wayward inside the cavity, his' internal conflicting thoughts bringing his' focus inward for the most part. However, what he failed to notice at the moment was that directly in front of his' thousand-yard stare, something had remained settled upright at the bottom of the cavity as his' empty gaze drifted unwittingly onto it. Luckily for him, some minute, echoing voice alerted the rest of the larger portion of his' mind that something was awry and as his' mind began to outwardly search for what his' instincts were alerting him to, his eyes once again focused themselves before both they and the rest of his' body froze entirely as he finally came to notice the solution to all his' worries.

Before him, amazingly upright in its position despite all the tumbling from the Deathstalker's strikes, free-fall and collision against the foundation of the canyon after its final battle, a small, statue-esque object sat within the confines of the Deathstalker's stinger; how he came to overlook this artifact in what was essentially a clear and open space, he didn't know. Though, his' slight tunnel-vision might have played a role in that as well as his' seeming inclination towards making unsound assumptions on his' own failures, a habit which he would aim to break as soon as possible. But, right now, there were bigger concerns than his' own short-comings to overcome at the moment, like celebrating this newfound discovery! However, the streamers would have to wait, obviously, for there were people waiting for him and the more worried they became, the more desperate they would become and Gabriel was fairly sure at least one of them would be desperate enough to climb in after him if they felt he had gotten himself stuck down here… or worse.

So, hoping that his' brief excavation into the stinger hadn't taken too much time to warrant everyone's attention, Gabriel began to hasten his' efforts to leave and reached into the otherwise empty void of the Deathstalker's Stinger to reach his' prize. And, upon his' gauntleted hand making contact with the motionless item, the small clang which emitted as his' hand grazed the item made him realize the item, which was wholly solid by the brief clanging sound it made as well as its resistance to the force his' scrape made, was made entirely of some sort of metal/alloy, a feature which he began to notice through the dull light allowed within the cramped confines of the hollowed cavity as the item itself shined as he went forward to reach it. Gripping the item, Gabriel pulled himself back out and away from the stinger before turning around as he began scrutinizing the relic which had eluded and nearly escaped his' notice up until now.

His' brief evaluation of the item earlier had been accurate, for as he both gauged the weight of the item as well as inspected its overall appearance, he was now more than certain that it was indeed made of some sort of metal, one which had been carefully tended to and flawlessly crafted into shape to meet its design specifications-being reminiscent to the design of a large chess piece, not unlike those he had seen earlier on in the initiation, though this one in specific appeared to be especially unique, the reason being for these two features in particular when considering its outward appearance. _First and foremost_ , unlike the other artifacts that resided within the temple along the surface, this artifact was neither Gold nor Black like its predecessors in order to differentiate which team the pieces were a part of, but was instead completely silver, shining magnificently in the light allowed to it through the thick haze of the fog surrounding him. _Second_ , and perhaps most captivating of all was its uncanny likeness to the designs of other chess-pieces, but yet again, this artifact's design was remarkably exceptional, those features seeming to be quite reminiscent to that of its given moniker mentioned in the letter from Ozpin-"The Prince", perfectly. While this piece doesn't technically exist, according to the official lore of the board-game anyway, it did indeed draw some inspiration from the other pieces of the game into its design, with some of the similarities being: like the parent pieces which inspired it, it had a long, narrow shaft that made up most of its body before tapering off at the head, its height slightly higher than that of the bishop's yet a hair's breadth shorter than that of the Queen. Following that, the head itself seemed to share the same basic design of the pawn piece, its head being mostly rounded in appearance unlike the crown-esque appearances of the King and Queen, likely to symbolize its junior status amongst the 'royal' figures of the game, though its final, remaining detail is what truly distinguished it from any other lower-grade chess-piece. While a pawn's head remains bare of any other features outside of its spherical design, the prince instead, like its namesake, carried with it a crown-like design, much in the same way the Queen piece does, where the queen's crown would seem to both merge yet carry around the bulbous head of the top of the piece itself, but while the Queen's design has its crown taper off with points shaping upwards while the head is adorned with a single-dotted cap of sorts, the appearance of the Prince's crown was quite different. Instead, resting all around the curved head of the unique piece, right around the height of where the forehead and ears would be, a carefully carved band that made up the crown sat laying on the 'Prince's' head, though instead of the regal design of many other crowns and royal jewels belonging to most Monarchies, the carefully-made design of the Prince's crown was much more humble, for laying all around the head of the Prince was a band seemingly made entirely of symmetrical, blossom-like flowers, many of which, like the Queen's, tapered off to a point along their tops, more than likely to invoke a slight sense of masculine nobility, though the core design of the band was plain and simple for all to see, if one cared to examine it as closely as he had.

As Gabriel turned the item around, over and under as he examined the item's details, as he came upon the underside of the piece, strangely enough there was something scrawled in tiny text along the bottom of the item, barely only legible when holding the piece up to eye-level. And, with his' curiosity piqued, Gabriel raised and tilted the item and began to focus on what was written along under its base, the text saying only this:

 _In the course of your life, no matter what you find or where you go, always remember this: "Wisdom doesn't give you direct answers, it tells you to ask yourself the right questions." –Oz_

Taking the words to heart and engraining them into his' memory, Gabriel shifted the piece once he was sure there was nothing left to read along its bottom before turning it over and around to see if there were any further details he could gleam from the item, he found none. And, once he was sure there wasn't anything left to find in the hollowed-out fissure of the Deathstalker's Stinger, Gabriel was finally prepared to leave the area at last, the cold that plagued the atmosphere finally beginning to get to him as his' arms and feet began to go numb while his' fingers in particular began to ache from the constant chill of the fog around him.

Thus, with the artifact held securely in-hand, with but a single shimmer of light along his' back followed by a single great flap from his' wings, Gabriel found himself rising out of the cold, unforgiving grip of the foggy chasm, the fog almost seeming to reach out for him as he left only for it to be harshly pushed back as he sent another powerful gust of wind downwards as he made his' ascent. And, hopefully, this reclamation would mark the end of today's tumultuous series of events and, perhaps, the beginning of the future he strived so hard to create…

* * *

 **(Moments earlier, Location-Stone pathways bridging the Emerald forest to the Cliffs leading towards Beacon Academy, Forest side)**

It had been several minutes since Gabriel had left and Jaune was beginning to really get anxious. Mostly, because Gabriel had told them that it'd only be a few minutes at most and he had been gone for twice as long as he figured that to be; as well as the stress induced by Gabriel's unconcerned method of leaping feet-first into the harrowing chasm, Jaune likening it that of a suicide attempt, which is what Jaune nearly took it for at first and would have had he not heard Gabriel's words prior to his' bounding leap. And it had been that vow that Gabriel had left him and Ruby with that kept him as calm as he was as he continued to wait, but even he had limits to how much he was willing to deal with and if Gabriel didn't arrive soon, he would soon try to gather the others up and probably have a vote to decide whether they should try to go after and bring him back if they could or go back to Beacon and try to bring back help. Either option had its merits but they also had their own issues, such as the wait if the wanted to bring back help only for them to all come to realize that they had arrived too late to save him -in case he was actually hurt and trapped down there or worse- or risk losing others in the pursuit to get down there themselves along with the possibility that it would have all been for naught if Gabriel was already dead. Still, he wouldn't let pessimism get the better of him, not now. For now, he'd hold out hope that his' friend had just been delayed for some reason or other, thus he'd give him another couple of minutes before getting everyone together.

However, there was one other person who was just as unsettled about the situation as he was, and as he turned to look at her as she stood over the cusp of the chasm, he couldn't help but admire her courage and determination to wait and look for the first sign of her friend while at great risk of falling herself; seeing both this and recalling the capability she exhibited in her battle prior to leaving and returning to this place, he privately vowed to himself that someday, he hoped he could come to be at least half as strong and courageous as she was. Then, on that thought, he turned around and left, heading towards his' partner as he went to check up on the others while he waited, figuring he might as well use his' time wisely now that things were calm for the moment.

Ruby, herself, either ignorant to or unheeding of Jaune or anyone else's attention continued to stand in the same place she had been in ever since her friend had left to search for whatever it was that he was looking for from the remains of the Deathstalker, if there even was anything left to explore now that its body had more than likely sizzled away by now in the way that all Grimm do once they die. And so, with this thought in mind, she wondered that if this indeed was the case, then what else exactly could be keeping her friend, then? What could be the reason for him to remain submerged in the misty haze below, now that his' self-allotted time had come and gone? Perhaps, she figured, he did indeed find what he had been looking for but some unseen issues had come about and he was simply working his' way past it. But, another part of her mind figured, what if, instead, something much direr happened and he now found himself trapped down there… alone? No, she couldn't think like that, she wouldn't! From what she had already seen of him firsthand since not only the first night she had seen him but in every other fight she had seen him contribute in, there was absolutely no way that anything could have stood in his' way if he was determined enough to reach it; heck, even that Goliath barely even stood a chance, if the brief mention of the battle he gave her as well as his' seemingly-intact appearance was any indicator as to how close the battle had actually become, or rather, the seeming lack of so showing otherwise. Figuring this to have been the case, Ruby's respect and admiration for him had grown immensely and his' achievement only seemed to spur her all that much more forward to become the very best Huntress that she could be in order to try and match him, and perhaps someday she could come to make not only herself proud, but him especially. The passing thought bringing forth a small smile on her face as she tried to imagine what that day would be like and what he'd say to her and how such praise from him would make her feel; at this, a sudden feeling of warmth began to emanate from within her chest and in turned created a slight blush which dotted her cheeks, the reaction lasting for but a moment before fading away, unnoticed by anyone, even her.

Still lost in her musings, Ruby failed to notice the mist below part as something ascended from its frigid depths until it had already reached eye-level with her some distance away between her side overlooking the canyon and the cliffs opposite her. And, even then, the figure continued their ascent for some feet above her before suddenly soaring right in her direction and before she even had a chance to move, the soaring being swooped over her before landing on the open ground that once laid behind her with an audible **'thump'** as armored boots met with earth. As she turned around fully to face the grounded figure, she was only just able to catch the sight of their wings as the constructs of light faded from existence. And, upon seeing the sight, she knew of only one person who matched this description and a smile slowly found its way onto her face at last.

Beginning to stand up from his' slightly-hunched position from landing, Gabriel barely had the time to take a breath before red, rose petals clouded his' vision before a familiar face made itself visible through the new haze which now clouded his' sight as it cleared up, knowing that it must have been from none other than Ruby as she used her Semblance to instantly reach him.

"There you are! I was starting to get worried! So, what kept ya? Did you find what you were looking for?" Ruby rattled off quickly, one after the other as she sought to sate her curiosity now that her worries had subsided.

"Yeah, sorry about that." He replied in a tired, calm voice, sighing to himself in slight exhaustion, if just from the sheer emotional exhaustion the experience put him through as he recalled it before continuing on with his' explanation. "Took me longer to find where the Grimm ended up after its fall, and the fog was no help either. Still, I found it and had to play the part of a surgeon there for a while, while I tried to mine something out from the last remaining piece of the Deathstalker. I'll explain why later."

Taking it all in stride, Ruby could only look at him curiously before a finger found itself to her chin as she adopted a thinking pose. "Oh, okay then. Still, you didn't answer my last question: Did you find what you were looking for?" She said, tilting her head as if she were trying to look around him as if to discern if he was carrying anything else behind him before her gaze once again returned to him, awaiting his' answer.

Saying nothing, Gabriel only extended his' right hand forward, the gesture promptly catching Ruby's attention and causing her to turn her gaze down towards his' hand, her look turning to one of curiosity as her mind began to wonder. A second later he opened his' hand once he was certain that he had her attention and presented the item that he found down there for her to see. Seeing it, her puzzlement grew as she recognized it to be an artifact not unlike those found back at the temple, though its' drastically different appearance seemed to give her pause as unspoken questions began making their way through her mind. Though, before she had a chance to act upon any of them and ask away, Gabriel already began speaking.

"I'll explain what it was doing down there with the Deathstalker later. But, it's already been a long day so how about we just gather everyone and head out of here with our relics and be done with this already?" He offered, the effects from all the day's events making itself known through his' tone as his' posture betrayed his body's level of weariness.

Taking her eyes off the unique item, Ruby didn't fail to notice the way that his' body began slouching in place slightly as she felt the effects of her own body tiring and thought better than to use any further time asking questions here when they could be using it to get back to the safety of civilization, knowing full well the others were hardly any better off than they were after all that they had went through today, though she figured they could still put up a good enough fight against anything that might want to go against them at the moment, if they needed to.

"Yeah, that sounds like a good idea, actually. Come on, let's go! Jaune's probably starting to freak out right about now wondering where you are." And with that, Ruby turned around and began to stroll away towards the assemblage standing near the forest, a slight skip in her step now that her worries were all but gone with the return of her friend and pseudo-role model.

Staring after her as she turned to leave, only when she turned back once she noticed he still hadn't followed and silently waited for him did he begin his' trek forward, once again closing his' grip and securing the item held within it before reaching Ruby and striding right alongside her as they made their way to the rest of their friends and class mates.

Then, as everyone turned upon noticing their arrival, Gabriel could only smile to himself at knowing that as one chapter of his' life now came to a close, so too did another open up before him, its possibilities all but endless in the wake of all that he left behind him moving forward along this Great Journey of his'.

* * *

 **A/N: That's that, not much else to say. Feedback is always appreciated and so on and so forth. Until next time ladies and gents, this is The Brutal Legend, signing off and logging out. Time for sleep. -_-**

 **A/N-P.S.: Interestingly enough, the whole thing surrounding the artifact in the stinger wasn't entirely my idea, though the design of the relic itself most certainly was, it was actually an intended detail the RWBY creators (Rooster Teeth or Monty, I'm not sure) planned to put in into the actual series originally, but I guess the concept was scrapped for some reason or other, probably got tired and didn't want to animate it, ran out of time to meet their upload schedule for the episode at the time or some other reason. If you wish to correct me on any of that, then by all means do so in a review or PM, I'm more than open to feedback, positive or critical. Anyway, that's all I wanted to add before I left to do life and stuff, Chao!**


	13. A long-awaited Induction

**Disclaimer: RWBY? Nope, not mine. Carry on…**

* * *

"Some people like to refer to us, heroes, as if we and the average person are two different things. In the end we're all just people-just as capable, and as vulnerable, as anyone else."-G.V.H.

* * *

( **Location-Hill overlooking The Emerald Forest** )

A man stood, his' figure and demeanor the very essence of composure as he gazed calculatingly at the same object that had held his' sole interest for the past hour or so, and for good reason.

Gazing at the pixelated screen of the electrical scroll device in his' hands, he was able to see the various events transpiring all throughout the forest below, whether it was the simple interactions of the initiates within the exam, their journey towards and attainment of their relic to the numerous, monumental battles that would come to involve the various students, some of the fights more unexpected and decisive than others. However, in the aftermath of the titanic clash between the two greater forces found within the forest, a rather unexpected meeting had begun to unfold between the struggle's victor and a presence he couldn't quite place. However, at the time, as he tried to discretely observe the distant conversation between the two figures was the feed from the drone suddenly cut off through unknown means, leaving his' view, as well as his' state of mind, a jumbled mess; And after some minutes of trying to maneuver the aircraft closer to his' general position for a better reception in the hopes of restoring the drone's feed did another strange event occur before his' very eyes. There, not even a mile/kilometer from his' position, did a winding pillar of darkness suddenly find itself sprouting from the very area the drone itself had once been soaring over as well as the location where he had last seen the remote pupil. Though, before either he or his' disconcerted assistant could have any chance of stopping the impending hazard did it suddenly stop in its growth before seeming to fade away altogether. Fortunately for him, with the cataclysm's end was his' view allowed to him through the drone once-again restored, the aircraft having miraculously survived the ordeal without incident, whatever interference that had once been afflicting its systems vanishing without a trace.

And, with his' sight restored so-to-speak, Ozpin continued his' observations with all those involved within the organized event, now made much easier now that the volume of encounters surrounding the participants having all-but-ceased in the wake of their climactic skirmishes with the Grimm, large or small.

Thus, Ozpin now found himself staring at a feed of the unique relic he had arranged for the seemingly-intact protégé he had in mind to retrieve it before the image on the feed suddenly changed as the previously-mentioned student closed their hand around the relic as they gripped the item, hiding it from view. With that, Ozpin had the camera of the drone zoom out before having it focus on the general view of all the remaining students of the trial as the final, two outliers of the test returned back to the rest of their group. Meanwhile, the steady rhythm of footsteps sounded out from behind him, alerting him to a familiar presence as they made their return, one which was all-too-welcome in these demanding times he found himself in these days.

Once the figure was within speaking distance did they halt in their stride, the new arrival now taking on a more disciplined stature as they straightened their posture and held both their hands behind their back before speaking.

"Almost everyone's been recalled back to the academy, those tasked with the transportation of the participants of the exam are the only ones remaining. Though, some of the staff are a bit perturbed having been called away from their duties and preparations for the day only for them to realize their haste was all for naught in the end." She said, her ever-present professionalism at work now that her worry over the student's safety had been abated.

"Understood, I'll try to make it up to them if I can. Can't have them upset after only just the first day of the class year. Remind me to schedule in a short meeting with them later if you could, Glynda." He said, turning his' gaze over his' shoulder as he addressed her before turning his' attention back on the screen in his' hand and adjusting a few settings for the camera.

"Certainly, Headmaster. And… if you don't mind, I'd like to ask about the students. Do you really think they're going to be okay? Should I have medical or psychological evaluations prepared, just in case some of them might need it?" She asked, her demeanor once again turning serious while her head tilted up slightly as she raised an eyebrow up questioningly.

"No, that'll be all, the students will be fine. Or as fine as children can be in these trying times, I suppose." He mused off-handedly, continuing to press and swipe at the device in his' hands as he spoke.

"Alright, then. If that is all you require of me then I shall be taking my leave. Will you be staying here much longer?" She asked, having turned around to head back down to the bottom of the hill where their private aircraft awaited them before half-turning back towards Ozpin as she asked him the last question.

Taking a moment as he activated the drone's autopilot/cruise function and plotting its course back towards the academy to land, he briefly pressed a couple more buttons on the scroll before collapsing the device back into its dormant, cylindrical form and depositing it into one of his suit's pockets. With that, he turned away from the cliff-edge for the first time since he arrived and began to make his' way down its path, only speaking up once he arrived beside Glynda.

"No, I think we've spent enough time out here this evening. Besides, we still have much left to do before the day is out. Come along, Glynda. Let's get going."

And with that he carried on purposefully past his' assistant, her having turned to face him as he passed her before she followed along behind, and headed down towards their ride. All the while, numerous considerations and musings carried on within the man's mind at near-superluminal speeds as he considered every aspect of the program that now awaited these youth and the opportunities that would be presented unto them in these coming years. For, as of now, their education had now well and truly begun…

* * *

( **Later, Location-Beacon Assembly Stage** )

After having been escorted from the forest, all those participating in the initiation directly or through observation now found themselves safely within the confines of the Academy grounds, the entire chamber which they now found themselves in being cast in an almost eerie sense of darkness, illuminated only by several, large cyan-blue lights that sat along the wall overlooking the stage. Meanwhile, all those in attendance either stood at the foot of the stage or sat in raised seats sectioned above it while they observed the ceremony with genuine enthusiasm, for either their friends or fellow school-mates in general, the silence only being broken by the crowd's prosperous applause whenever a name or set of names was called out. And even now near the end of the ceremony their fervor did not waver in the least, especially now that the more promising members of the newest class at Beacon were now about to be called forth; if the rumors beginning to go around were to be believed, anyway.

With none other than the Headmaster acting as the speaker for the assembly, several names now found themselves voiced aloud to the crowd while those that they pertained to stood silently and passively as they were recognized this day; idly, presented on a couple of large, holographic panels above the audience, several faces of those mentioned shifted about as their names were called out before eventually sorting themselves in a straightened set, each picture sitting beside one another once the process was finished and providing a more detailed depiction of those being addressed towards the crowd.

"Russell Thrush, Cardin Winchester, Dove Bronzewing, Sky Lark. The four of you have retrieved the Black Bishop pieces. From this day forward, you will work together as: Team CRDL- Led by Cardin Winchester." Ozpin said resolutely, facing the four newly-anointed members of the abovementioned team, each of the members standing stoically and unflinchingly on stage as their new-found status was declared by their Headmaster to the audience and the team itself. And, with their standing confirmed, and after a brief, uproarious applause from the crowd around them, they promptly began leaving the stage as the next team was summoned onto the stage as their names were called up.

"Jaune Arc, Lie Ren, Pyrrha Nikos, Nora Valkyrie. The four of you retrieved the White Rook pieces. From this day forward, you will work together as: Team JNPR." Ozpin declared in much the same, formal tone as he did with the team prior, though his' eyes may have held a shade more affection, in its most abstract meaning, than it did with any other team announced until this point, taking particular interest in these individual's character and potential and what that would come to create in the coming years at and beyond the Academy. Meanwhile, in the lull allowed between this section of the speech, Nora Valkyrie took the opportunity to give an unsuspecting Ren an affectionate hug as she laughed lightly in glee at their accomplishment, Ren himself being too surprised, or too embarrassed, by the sudden gesture to fully reciprocate it at the moment; Pyrrha looked on unabashedly in amusement at the display while Jaune himself remained idle in his' spot for only a moment longer as he took in the excitement, and anxiousness, of the moment before turning to look at the scene as well.

Unperturbed by the sudden lax in atmosphere, Ozpin elaborated further on the team's new status, one which would come to surprise them, some more than others. "-Led by Jaune Arc.", a statement which was, once again, followed by an uproarious applause from the crowd, no less genuine than the time before it.

"Huh?!" Jaune said, turning away from the hugging duo beside him, utterly baffled by the unexpected turn of events. "L-led by?" He said, seemingly in a much quieter tone than before as he placed a hand on his' chest as the weight of the realization brought upon by the announcement began to set in; Pyrrha, meanwhile, upon hearing the Headmaster's words turned towards her partner-now-turned-leader in gleeful excitement, giving a large smile at her friend's achievement despite his' seeming reluctance on the matter.

Continuing on as dryly as ever, Ozpin only added upon the statement with, "Congratulations, young man." His' demeanor showing that this choice had indeed neither been made lightly nor without consideration, though whatever those reasons may have been were truly beyond Jaune's comprehension at the moment as he really couldn't come to believe it.

Just as the weight of the proclamation began to set in, Pyrrha, who still stood facing their newly-proclaimed leader, gave an affectionate jab towards Jaune's arm, intending for it to be merely a disarmingly-friendly, glancing blow only for it to have the unintentional effect of knocking over her leader sideways onto the ground of the stage due to both the sheer innate strength her body held and the frail nature of Jaune's body, only coming to realize what had happened a moment later as the crowd began to laugh at the incident. And, seeing that enough embarrassment had been committed by her team already, chose not to worsen the situation and instead openly smiled towards the headmaster, the slightest bit of embarrassment making its way known into her features. Though, like before, Ozpin once again began reciting the names of the following group, indicating her team's queue to depart the stage. And needing no further prompting, Pyrrha, along with the now-separated Ren and Nora, turned around to leave the stage but she paused just before leaving to offer a helping hand to Jaune to get him off the ground after their mishap, Jaune accepting the gesture only after getting over the shock of having been unintentionally manhandled by his' female teammate and friend. And, taking only a moment to dust himself off after the incident, Jaune along with the rest of team JNPR left the stage, each of them giving the next group varying gestures ranging from nods, waves and brief acknowledgements as they all passed each other on their way to and from the stage, respectively.

"Blake Belladonna, Ruby Rose, Weiss Schnee and Yang Xiao Long. The four of you retrieved the White Knight pieces. From this day forward, you will work together as: Team RWBY. Led by…" Ozpin paused, letting the long moment of silence draw out for what seemed to be the final team announcement for the day. Then, almost as if he had never paused in the first place, he announced the leader of Team RWBY to be: "… Ruby Rose.", a statement said with much the same amount of enthusiasm and professionalism as every other before it. However, despite his' own seeming lack of excitement on the matter, there was another, much more boisterous member amongst those gathered on the stage who would display it in his' stead, someone who was already quite familiar with the young girl and had been for some time.

"Oh, I'm so proud of you!" Yang said with unreserved delight and pride, which was only compounded further as she rushed and hugged her sister. Ruby herself could only stand there, shocked yet absolutely excited at the prospect of leading her very own team-on her first year at Beacon no less! And at the moment, she simply couldn't find the words to express her level of excitement and so instead chose to remain in Yang's embrace, which was soon released a couple of moments later as Yang turned slightly and held Ruby in place within arm's reach as she quietly expressed her pride and enjoyment over Ruby's achievement and began hurriedly whispering various praises and the like towards Ruby; both of the two conversing sisters ignorant to the conflict happening within Weiss over being crushed by Ozpin's choice for the leader of the team, feeling that she herself had more than deserved it for the level of tactical awareness and competence that she had shown in her trek throughout the Emerald Forest. Still, for the moment, she didn't let so much as even a tense wrinkle show and instead remained stone-faced along with her teammate, Blake, as the ceremony carried on.

"And finally, we have a rather… exceptional addition to this year's listing. Mr. Van Helsing, if you would please come out onto the stage." The statement was further punctuated as those in the hall clapped as Team RWBY exited the stage like the teams prior, though just as Ozpin announced the name of the final person and his' picture was displayed onto the screens above, Ruby suddenly found herself rooted in place, turning her gaze forward instead of the ground which had momentarily been keeping her attention as she caught her friend exiting the hall everyone used to get to the platform from backstage, his' face open for any and all to see now that the hood which had for so long been covering his' head all throughout the day was now off and bunched around the sides of his' neck while he silently continued to march out to meet the Headmaster. And, not knowing why, she found herself more curious than anything to see why he, alone, seemed to be called up onto the stage without so much as even a single partner to accompany him. So, feeling that he should at least have _someone_ who he knew to share in his' moment of accomplishment, Ruby stopped in her tracks and turned back around to face the stage from her current place at the sidelines between the seats and wall of the enclosure, the sudden stop causing Yang to pause in her walk which in turn caused Weiss and Blake to stop as well, the other three wondering what was keeping their leader.

"You can go on ahead and leave if you guys want, I'm just gonna stay for another minute and finish watching the ceremony from here." Ruby supplied, already sensing the already-developing questions her teammates had for her sudden pause.

"No, it's fine. I guess I can stay too, kinda curious to see what the Headmaster has in store for your new friend." Yang replied, turning her gaze from Ruby and back towards the stage, waiting to see what was going to happen next.

Blake, herself, going with the near-majority vote of the group turned away from heading towards the hallway door leading out from the area and silently gazed upon the stage as well, waiting patiently like the other two members of her team beside her as they observed the apparent final phase of the ceremony.

Weiss, meanwhile, still in her dour demeanor since the leadership announcement moments earlier, only gave a brief ' **Hmph'** followed by an upturn of her head before silently marching herself away into the hall, having no patience to deal with the whimsical activities of their leader in something she felt was less than consequential for them at the moment. In her own mind, she figured that if it wasn't anything crucial or prudent for her or the team, it was all just a colossal waste of their, and especially her, time. And so, with the graceful silence of an icy tundra, she strode away into the darkened halls they emerged from and towards the space where Ms. Goodwitch patiently awaited their return, eager to learn and find the room her and her team would be staying in and getting a good night's rest while she could, now that she was alone for the moment. And, while her teammates could only look on at her with mild bemusement as they watched her wordless departure, each of the three having their own particular thoughts on the matter before they turned their attention back to the ceremony as Ozpin's voice made itself known once again to all those attending.

"Gabriel Van Helsing, you alone have found the Silver Prince piece. Because of the exceptional level of skill and valor you have demonstrated in your pursuit to find and claim your relic as well as what you have displayed throughout the initiation prior to that, it is with both great honor and pride that I grant the title of class Supervisor to you. This means, from this moment onwards, you are allowed to act in an advisory capacity to those within and without your current year, whenever you are able to that is. This is not something I give out lightly, only the best are offered the chance to take on this role and I expect the best in return; I know you will not let me down." He said, his' voice dropping down to a near-whisper as the announcement tapered off, the barest twitching of his' lips along with the slightest softening of his' eyes providing the only clue to the pride that he was feeling from this announcement at the moment.

"Thank you, Headmaster. I'm honored." Gabriel responded, inclining his' head slightly towards the man in gratitude, a blush beginning to make its way onto his' cheeks, one barely noticeable through the darkened atmosphere of the stage. All the while, applause rang out through the air, humbling the young man further as he took a moment to gaze at those gathered all around him, a smile making its way onto his' face as he looked upon the cheering crowds within the assembly area.

"Think nothing of it, it's the least I could do to recognize the capabilities you've displayed today and I'm more than certain your guidance will be highly appreciated in the coming years. Now, I believe that's all for the ceremony, unless you have some choice words of inspiration for those gathered here?" The man said cryptically, giving the student a neutral look as he waited silently in place along the stage as the cheering around them began to quiet down.

"Well, now that you've said something, do I really have a choice in the matter?" Gabriel asked rhetorically, getting only a noncommittal shrug from the man opposite him in reply, a gesture which caused him to visibly sag and sigh in defeat. 'Well,' he figured, 'may as well go for broke.' And with that, he straightened back out before turning to the crowd beside the both of them. Then, clearing his' throat with a brief cough before beginning, he addressed the room.

"Everyone, if I may please have your attention." He said briefly, gathering the attention of those seated and standing around him, leaving the area in complete silence save for the occasional shuffle or cough. "I know that not very many of you know me and even less of you are impressed with the announcement Ozpin has made and I truly understand you could care less about what I plan to say before you head back and do whatever it is that you're going to do when this is over. But, before that, I hope to at least impart you all with some sort of message or lesson before my time here at Beacon is finished. Though, I say this not because I plan to interact and change your lives or experiences personally. No, I'm simply here for inspiration, to have you wish to do better for not only yourselves but for those around you to perform and act to the best of your abilities. But, of course, like with everything else that you do, in time doubts may begin to fester along your journey and you may begin to wonder, 'What if?' What if you fail an incredibly important test, one that could mean the difference between staying in or leaving Beacon? What if you can't impress your family or friends here at the Academy before your time here is done? What if… What if you can't prove to even yourself that you're worth more than what people see you as? That you can't become a true Huntsman because you and everyone around you considers you too immature or too much of a flunky to even have a shot? Well, I'll tell you why: Because who are **they** to judge you? Who are **they** to judge what you are truly capable of accomplishing? Who are **they** to try to understand who _you_ are and what _you've_ gone through to get here? Well, unless they come to live a day in your shoes, they will never know who you really are and even then they may come to misjudge what you're truly able to accomplish in time-of what you're willing to make happen for yourselves. And so, knowing this, why should we be afraid to act, to _try_ to make our dreams reality? Why must we simply stand in the shadows of giants-the seemingly daunting reputations and legends of those whom we consider to be infinitely greater than ourselves? I say this because standing here before all of you, I see nothing but the potential to carry out our salvation against these creatures which continue to ravage and plague our world. It will not be easy, of that you and I can be sure, but I have faith that each and every one of you will live up to the title of being a Hunter of Grimm. Together, we will be the generation that rises above all others and we will be the heroes to burn away this darkness that has set upon Remnant. And once we do so, _we_ will be the heroes that others will come to look up to and strive to surpass in order to protect the world. So, go! Go forth and become the best that we can make you! I wish you luck. All of you." With that, he gave the crowd a mock-solute before returning back to his' stoic 'at-attention' pose, marking the speech's end. Then, an instant later, the crowd began to clap, then they began to cheer and cheer they did.

Observing the noticeably higher level of applause coming from around him, Ozpin couldn't help but be impressed with the effect the lone student had on the rest of the student body with a 'few, choice words.'. And, not taking his' eyes away from the gathered crowd throughout the auditorium, Ozpin leaned over to the younger gentlemen as he stood idly in his' spot since his' speech ended.

"Sounds like that did the trick, just don't let the popularity go to your head, young man." He said in a voice a hair's breadth above a whisper, an almost admiring tone making its way into his' voice from what Gabriel could tell from it.

"I'll try my best not to, sir. Though, I think this was just a one-off thing for me to be honest." Gabriel said, leaning over and turning the slightest bit towards the Headmaster as he spoke to him as he too kept his' gaze on the crowd, admiring their rising level of exuberance.

"I don't know about that, I've seen some pretty incredible things come out of this academy, so I wouldn't be surprised to hear quite a few great things about you in the future. And, as far as I can tell with how things are going, it seems like things are shaping up to be quite an… interesting year." He said, pausing as he let the conversation die there before leaning away from the younger man and made to address the crowd once again.

"Now then, settle down everyone." And once they began to, he continued. "I believe that's all for tonight, you are all dismissed. As of now, the curfew for this evening is now in effect. Please return to your assigned rooms and if you have any questions, please ask any of the attending staff or your fellow students. Now then, off you go." And with that, the shadowed figures that made up the students all throughout the dimly-lit space now began to shuffle out, the low-level of chatter making itself known throughout the room as they all sought to leave.

And, needing no further prompting from anyone other than himself, Ozpin himself only gave the briefest of nods towards the only other person on the stage before turning on his' heel and made his' way out of the auditorium.

Seeing the man part, Gabriel was just about to call him back for a quick, personal inquiry but before he had the chance to even let out a single word was he, for the umpteenth time that day, interrupted as another voice called out from behind him, the voice quickly grabbing his' attention and having him turn towards its source.

"Gabriel!" An exuberant Ruby called out, waving to him as she jogged on over towards him. "Wow, that speech was amazing! Did you see the way everyone was cheering for you? It was incredible! It's too bad you didn't get to be on a team, but class Supervisor sounds pretty important. I hope you'll still have time to hang out with us whenever you're not busy doing… whatever it is that you have to do."

"Meh, I'm not too worried about it. I mean, for all intents and purposes I'm still a student here at Beacon, so it shouldn't be much different than what I would have had otherwise. Besides, it's not like it's an actual job or anything where I'd have to be licensed in order to actually do it; would love to be paid for it though." Gabriel mused, a distant look in his' eyes as he began to half-seriously wonder if that was even an option for him to follow; he was already considering the idea of setting a plan up with Ozpin to compensate him for his' service in the future, if nothing else he was hoping he could at least negotiate the idea of having staff-levels of authorization, if ever a time would come where he would need it.

Unaware of his' sudden change in thought, Ruby went on to ask her next question. "Do you think you'll be able to do it? Be a mentor. I mean, I'm pretty sure you could handle it well enough but do you even want this job?"

Brought out of his' thoughts, his' gaze shifted once again to Ruby before focusing back on her question, after taking a moment to ponder over the topic, he finally decided on his' answer. "…Yes. I'm not saying it'll be anything professional, not by any means, since I'm not qualified for expert-level guidance, but I figure Ozpin knew what he was doing when he let me take on that small token of responsibility. Besides, if anyone's not comfortable with me giving them advice, they could just go to one of the staff or something and I can just continue on with my educational career as is, regardless."

"Oh, okay. Sounds simple enough when you put it like that. You're pretty smart, so I guess you would have it all figured out. Hey, wait. Since you weren't put on a team, do you still get a room or do you have to bunk with another team or something?" She asked, genuinely curious to how that situation would go if he did wind up having to share a room with some nameless team or other.

"Hmmm," He hummed, giving her a confused look before going on to clarify, "Oh, no I'm good. I got my own room, actually. Though, it's only a spare but it still comes with the standard dresser, desk, a bookcase along with a few other things and a couple of beds; not that I'll actually be using more than one though. Ms. Goodwitch told me about it while I was waiting backstage before Ozpin called me up. So, yeah. Go me." He raised a fist half-heartedly in faux-excitement before quickly dropping it, not having much more to say on that point other than that.

"Are you sure you're fine with just having your own room? What about whenever you're up at night and can't fall asleep because you're worried about something and you don't have anyone to talk with? Won't you feel lonely?" She asked, looking at him in a sympathetic sort of way.

Chuckling at her concern, he reached up and patted her head, though he stopped before she had a real chance to shake his' arm off. "No, no. Thank you for worrying, but unlike a lot of people I prefer peace and quiet most of the time rather than company, especially when I need to get some work done. Though, I guess I do see the point in having people around to help whenever you have a problem. I don't know, I'll see how this setup goes during my time here." He said, shrugging. Then, as if just remembering something, he gave her a considerate look. "Ruby." Gathering the young girl's attention, she casted a curious look over towards him. "I think it's getting late already, why don't you and your team head back to your dorms and we can continue this talk another time? Curfew's in effect now, remember?"

At hearing this, Ruby visibly began to pale a little as she already began fearing that she would once again make another bad impression so early in the school year, this time with the assistant director of Beacon, Glynda, whom she was fairly sure was just waiting to reprimand her and her team as soon as they entered the hall; even as she risked a look over her shoulder into the dark depths of the hall where she would need to go to leave, she was almost certain she could see a pair of gleaming, green eyes glaring back at her, sending a series of chills running down the young maiden's spine.

Knowing that their time was short, Ruby turned back to her waiting classmate, the slightest bit of regret showing in her eyes as she knew she had to leave before things got any worse. "Yeah, that'd probably be a good idea." She said, beginning to turn around to leave while speaking over her shoulder. "I'll talk to you later, alright? See you around!" And with that, Ruby fully turned around and sped off towards her awaiting teammates and without another word between them they hurried on to their dorm, hoping to avoid a scolding from the most embittered, or at least strictest, member of the Beacon academy staff.

Shaking his' head light-heartedly, Gabriel watched as the three departed into the darkness before turning his' attention away from the hall they left from and towards another exit. Though he knew the curfew applied to him as well, he still had another, personal matter which required his' attention before he could turn in for the night. And with that, he went into one of the other adjoining halls of the room and left, leaving the auditorium in silence, save for the slight echoes his' departing footfalls left behind.

* * *

 **(Some time later)**

While he considered himself a patient man, Ozpin could feel his' irritation grow with every form that he had to look over. As he read over the contents of yet another form while idly writing down a note to schedule an appointment with another member of the staff to talk over the fluctuating finances of the Academy and how best to go about resolving that issue, he could only sigh to himself in slight relief upon seeing there were only a few more reports to go over for the night. Setting down the financial statement in his' hand off to the side, he was just about to pick up another form when a series of knocks in the rhythm of 'Shave and a haircut' interrupted his' work. Taking a quick look at his' watch, he wondered who'd wish to see him at this late of an hour. While his' first thoughts had him guessing it was Glynda, he figured this wasn't the case because with the level of familiarity shared between them, having worked together with her for some time, he was more than sure that she would have let herself in by now of her own accord. And, with only the ensuing silence as his' guest awaited his' permission to enter acting as his' answer, he promptly told them to "Enter." before sitting up in his' seat as the door silently opened. Though, he had to admit, he was only the slightest bit surprised to see who his' guest was.

Walking forward until he stood before Ozpin's desk, Gabriel took a moment to gather his' thoughts as the Headmaster watched him with his' ever-present scrutinizing gaze, an action which unintentionally began to unsettle him and so, before it could cause him to totally lose his' nerve, Gabriel went on to explain the reason for his' sudden visit.

"Excuse me, Headmaster. I know it's late and I'm supposed to be getting ready for my upcoming classes, but there's something I wished to ask you before it escaped my mind. It'll only take a minute of your time, sir." He said, his' voice imploring yet polite.

Taking a moment to study the man further as he rested his' head on steeped fingers, Ozpin's face didn't betray anything towards his' mood. Once he felt an appropriate time had come to pass, he answered his' student. "Alright, but only a minute. I've been quite busy this evening and I would appreciate it if I could actually find _some_ sleep tonight while I still can." He said, grinning the slightest bit to show that he wasn't particularly bothered by his' student's visit, almost in fact welcoming it as it provided him a quick moment of relief from his' work.

Noticing the sudden lax in atmosphere, Gabriel could only give the man a grateful, smile for allowing him the chance to sate the mild sense of curiosity that had been plaguing him since his' return from the forest. Though, while other larger, more crucial questions were begging to be made known between the two of them, Gabriel kept his' own curiosity at bay, knowing there would be other, better times to make such questions known once both Ozpin and he had gotten used to the busy days which would soon be upon them in the coming school year; though, if Ozpin decided to ask such questions instead, he wouldn't be opposed to the idea.

"Thank you. Now, I know you mentioned that the Silver Prince piece was a unique and special artifact. While I understand that it may be tradition for anyone offered the role of class Supervisor, or whatever it may have been called before me, to go find another, similar item or to do some other task you assigned to them at the time, what I'm curious about is this: While other 'official' game pieces were used as relics this year to be retrieved, why was it a 'prince' of all things to be used for my trial? What's the story behind it?" He then paused, almost unsure if he should bring up the point by thought otherwise of letting the question go and decided to ask anyway. "By the way, did you want it back? I mean, I'm pretty sure everyone else turned theirs in already but nobody bothered to ask me for mine." Gabriel rambled, bringing out the metallic item from one of the pockets lining the inside of his' cloak and presenting it to Ozpin, looking at him questioningly all the while.

"No, keep it. You worked to find and claim it and this one was distinctly made for you in mind, especially the maxim I left for you on it; though, whether you keep the item as a memento to reminisce over many years from now, or simply have it act as a paper-weight for your time here at our prestigious academy until a time where you may unwittingly misplace it, is completely up to you. Now, in regards to the inspiration for the item itself, well, that's a bit of a long story. But, if you're willing to humor an old man such as myself, I'd love to tell you more about it." Getting a nod from the man across from him as his' answer, Ozpin quickly let another, much more appreciative smile adorn his' face before continuing. "Good, then. Well, the legend goes a bit like this…"

"Long ago, in a time quite different from our own where the customs of the people and land were of a more simplistic nature, feudalism marked itself amongst the warring factions of the world and with these conflicting powers came a great deal many fronts and means in order to reach and preserve power amongst a select caste within each particular state, the idea coming to eventually be known as nobility. As you know, there were many labels given to those within the upper-echelon of this distinctive tier, some famous ones being referred to as the King, followed by the Queen to eventually their successors, more often than not through a familial heir or heirs. Now, this story in particular follows one man in particular, and though his' name has long been lost along the winds of time, his' memory still lives on in those willing to hear and remember it. There once was a prince, and like any successor he was treated with the luxuries of any noble upbringing while also being guided and refined in the ways to become the next viable successor to the crown. And, while such treatment would have spoiled rotten the character of weaker inheritors, he remained surprisingly modest despite such an upbringing. And, as fate would have it, he was eventually gifted with the company of a younger, admiring sibling, a sister. As they both grew, so too did their bond with one another and it became common knowledge that if one caught sight of one of the siblings, the other would not be far behind. As such, whenever the opportunity presented itself, the two heirs would often spend their free time outside, exploring and relishing in the tranquility present along the grassy hills in the area immediately outside the castle's walls, often under the watchful gaze of some guard or watcher or other, but for the most part they were free to act and play as they may. One day, as the two children found themselves playing on one such hill, after exhausting themselves quite dearly after yet another afternoon of light-hearted tomfoolery, as they rested under the shade of a sizable oak tree, the sister, still in a delightful mood after having spent some quality time with her most favorite person in the world, on a whim began picking various flowers in the immediate area of the tree before she started to shape and twist them together, an idea beginning to form as she continued her work. The prince, meanwhile, unaware of his' sibling's task, was simply relaxing in his' spot as he blithely observed the clouds overhead, and it was during this casual activity where he was caught by surprise by the sudden sensation of something being pushed on his' head from behind him, causing him to turn in surprise to the culprit only to meet the playful, joyous gaze of his' sister. In response to his' alarmed, questioning gaze, she simply told him that as a prince, he would need to have to get used to wearing a crown, for when the day came that he would become ruler of the realm, he would most certainly be wearing one for the rest of his' days and that now was as good a time as any to start getting used to wearing one, and what better crown than one made of the most beautiful thing in the land, flowers. As she finished explaining this to him, she gave him a proud, beaming smile and whatever reservations, not that he would have really had any against his' dear sister, which he might have had from the sudden, unexpected gift were quickly laid to rest and soon he too joined her in her gleeful demeanor and smiled graciously at his' sister, knowing that he'd forever be grateful for the gift that she bestowed upon him. Yet, as always, time seems to sober every mind and as the both of them grew, so too did their demeanor grow somber as the weight of their responsibilities steadily built with each passing season until finally the day came where they at last found themselves in the position as rulers of the kingdom. And, while the prince-now-turned-king was rarely sighted without his' royal attire as well as his' crown, whenever he found a moment to himself to truly relax in the privacy of his' own quarters, he would sometimes set aside his' official crown and jewelry only to open a moderately-small case which sat upon his' desk to retrieve what lay inside. For although its physical value was marginal, the sentimental value of the item he kept stored was priceless, so much so that every time he looked at the withering form of the crown of flowers made for him so very long ago did a warm sensation always find its way into his' weary heart. And yet, even years later after every other member of his' family had left him, never did he allow the pressures of the world to claim him, for every time he gazed upon one of the most treasured items in his' possession was he always reminded of his' dear sister's unbridled, unwavering love for him. Forever and ever."

Silence, that was all that was left by the story's end, from both Ozpin and Gabriel. Ozpin, after waiting for some sort of response from his' student, went and called out to him to shake him out of his' brief reverie.

"Mr. Van Helsing?" He said, jarring Gabriel out of his' thoughts as he looked curiously towards the man, who in turn simply gave him a raised eyebrow, silently asking him what was concerning him while also asking him for his' thoughts on the tale and what it meant to him.

"Sorry, Headmaster." Gabriel said, pausing to shake his' head slightly before straightening back up as he regained his' focus back to the present. "I was just wondering, while it was a very interesting story, and I appreciate you telling me all about it, what does the prince's story have to do with me?"

The older man simply looked at him, almost as if he were waiting for some sort of answer or realization to dawn on the unknowing protégé. Though, when it seemed that whatever it was that he was looking for did not come to pass, he gave off a brief sigh of what seemed to be disappointment before fixing the younger man with a look of subdued impatience.

"The reason, young man," He said tersely, causing Gabriel to squirm in place at the man's sudden change in tone. ", is that it's to serve as a reminder for you to remain humble; that despite what the world will give and take from you, just remember to hold on to who you are and what you hold close to your heart, whether it's a creed, an idea or simply love from those you hold dear. Then again, you might have figured this out all on your own had you followed the other aspect of the relic I gave you and remembered the quote I left for you on it: Ask yourself the right questions." Again, this caused the young man to flinch silently in his' spot, his' head turning down in dismay from the man's word as well as in shame.

Seeing this, the older man's eyes softened from their previously hardened gaze and he let out yet another sigh before closing his' eyes. After a moment, he once again opened them after he calmed down slightly and looked at the despondent form of the student in front of him once more. While the brief lapse in insight on the young man's part did leave Ozpin in a slightly agitated mood, he was by no means angry or disappointed and as such thought fit to let his' student know of that.

"Look at me, Gabriel." After he slowly and hesitantly did so, Ozpin continued. "I picked you to be your class' paradigm this year because I saw the potential you had to become something more than just an ordinary man-to become something great, legendary even. Because of that, people are going to look up to you, for either inspiration or guidance, and I need you to be strong enough to carry that out, for their sake. I've seen what happens to those who fail in that regard and let me tell you: Death will be the least of your worries, and Remnant already has enough dead heroes." Finished with his' tirade, Ozpin straightened his' posture, his' point made while he patiently awaited Gabriel's response.

Gabriel, meanwhile, found himself looking away from Ozpin slightly and a bit down towards the professor's desk. As he thought over the man's words, their meaning having a profound impact and his' thoughts over not just the role Ozpin had planned for him in the upcoming future but as well as his' thoughts on the man himself. Gabriel figured the Headmaster had been doing this job for quite some time, the Academy's reputation and the reverence even other nations had for Beacon's apparent ability to produce capable Huntsmen proving as much, and knowing that all that stood between his' (Ozpin's) beloved pupils and the cold, unforgiving world ahead of them was what Ozpin chose to teach them, and that if he failed to raise them properly in any particular regard in terms of how to approach their horrifying enemy, it could mean the difference between life and death for them. And, it had been this lingering guilt that came with this certain sense of responsibility that was more than likely plaguing this wise mind before him that left Gabriel with a profound respect for the man and his' ability to carry on past it, and if nothing else, it would be that sense of respect which would serve as both a reminder as well as an incentive to make sure he lived up to Ozpin's expectations as best he could, along with any other responsibilities he'd be shackled with in the future.

After having reflected on this matter for some odd moments, Gabriel raised his' head to look at the man and fixed Ozpin with the most confident, assured look he possibly could and said:

"Up until this moment, I've had to do things ranging from defying both gods and demons, ending the lives of men and monsters alike and speaking with both divinity and royalty. For, through it all, it has brought me to this point where I now find myself in your company, in your service. You sought to believe in me, a total stranger-one whom you owed absolutely nothing to yet allowed the chance to not only give him the tools he would need to slay each and every member of Grimm in this world, but also make him a representative of an entire student body. In knowing and understanding all of that, there is no truer response I could give to you now other than this, Ozpin: I _will_ not let you down." He said, his' stature once again at-attention like before, but it seemed more stiff, more firm, as if it were a representation of the man's own sense of certainty over what he promised to set out to do.

Ozpin, upon hearing the man's words and seeing the open display of confidence he was portraying, raised an eyebrow in response and did nothing else for the next few moments as he evaluated the resolve on display before him, and seeing no other indication from the man to think otherwise, knew that both his' own words, as well as the pupil's, had indeed rung true. With his' point understood, Ozpin's features visibly relaxed and for seemingly the first time that night, a sincere, hopeful smile found itself gracing his' face.

"Hearing you say that, I can actually believe it." Ozpin said, though as he paused between statements, his' once-sincere smile suddenly faded away as his' next announcement came to mind. "Now, there are still a few matters I would like to discuss with you before we're done here tonight." He paused, preparing himself for the discussion ahead if it were to go in the direction he so feared it might. "So, first off, who was it that you spoke to just after your victory against the Goliath and what exactly was the nature of your discussion, Mr. Van Helsing?" And with a slight downturn of his' head, within the light allowed within the confines of the room, his' glasses seemed to glint ever so slightly, the glare hiding his' eyes from view.

* * *

 **(Same night, Elsewhere)**

The room was dark, its features relatively nondescript save for the paneled window that stretched across the length of the room high along one of its walls. For the moment, only the moonlight let in through the clear glass surface was the only means of illumination for the only person within the chamber. Despite the otherwise unnerving atmosphere these circumstances created, the figure seemed rather indifferent to it all as she carried on with her routine task at hand, and in doing so her voice rang out through what was an otherwise empty room.

"Everything is underway." She said, seeming to gaze out at nothing other than the shadows lingering before her. In spite of this, she nodded in response as a seemingly inaudible voice spoke with her, its source seemingly known only to the young woman in the room.

"Yes, ma'am. And what do we do about the traveler? After what's happened he's already become a large enough threat to our plans and if we continue to let him go on as is he will only get stronger and I feel it'd be imperative to deal with him before anything could come from it. With the new recruits I'm more than certain that we can deal with him and…" She paused as the silent voice interrupted her, giving her their own opinion on the issue, causing the young woman to nod numbly in place, her face equal parts seriousness as well as contemplation.

"Are you sure? What if that doesn't work, what if-" She paused again, the voice once again replying to her concerns.

"…Understood. Yes, ma'am. Do you require anything else from me before I part?" She waited as the voice responded once again.

"Okay then. For the time being I'll continue to carry out the operation as planned, I'll keep you informed as much as I can. I won't fail you, Milady." At this, the voice spoke up and the girl smiled in turn at the silent, off-hand compliment given to her.

"Thank you, Cinder out." And on that final note, she turned on her heel and left the space, leaving nothing but dust and echoes in her wake.

* * *

 **A/N: Dun, Dun, Duuuuunnn- (Falls asleep.) -_-**

 **The Brutal Legend, out.**


	14. New day, Old issues

**Disclaimer: I do not, in any way, shape or form, own the rights or am legally permitted to alter the actual canon matters of RWBY or its licensed sub-products and properties. Those belong to their own respective owners.**

* * *

"What is the measure of a man aside from his' actions? On the outside, not much. But, on the inside, their intentions will tell you everything about them; from the makeup of their character, the humanity or the indifference they are willing to show their fellow man, to the scars of the past which line their very soul."-G.V.H.

* * *

It was a relatively quiet day, the sun was shining, soft, fluffy clouds were out blanketing the sky and you could hear the random chirping of birds as they flew overhead.

At least, if you were outside, you would have experienced all this beauty nature had to offer. On the inside of a classroom, things were noticeably more subdued and overall far less interesting.

In another pristine example of what a generally boring lecture was expected to be, various students found themselves in the company of one of the leading veteran Huntsmen and instructors of the academy, Professor Port. Though, many, if not all, of them really wish they weren't. The professor was a stocky, proud-looking man well into his' years, marking him as both a man of experience and a man of drive when it came to dealing with all aspects of Grimm; meaning that from what could be gathered from a first-hand glance of his' interests, teaching this class must've been a dream job for him.

"Monsters. _Demons_. Prowlers of the night." He said in varying levels of emphasis. "Yes, the creatures of Grimm have many names. But I merely refer to them as prey!" He said, punctuating the statement with a haughty chortle, startling a select few amongst his' audience, namely Ruby from her otherwise brief dozing during the droning lecture.

It was this sight and many others Gabriel took notice of from his' seat a couple rows from the front of the class, where he found himself in the more than welcome company of both Team RWBY and Team JNPR as they witnessed yet another lesson in the history of Remnant and of the Grimm.

Sitting quietly in his' seat, occasionally adjusting the pressed collar of the uniform he was required to wear during class, Gabriel was able to take minute observations of the room, or rather those that found themselves in it. From what he could see from his' brief glances to Team JNPR, he could see the varying levels of interest the group expressed during this particular lesson, with Pyrrha and Ren paying rapt attention to the class while occasionally jotting down notes from the information supplied by either the Professor himself or from the board detailing the various traits and weaknesses of the Grimm written on it at the front of the class. Jaune himself, however, was barely able to follow much of what the man had to say, half from trying to figure out which information the Professor was saying was actually practical or important while the other half was trying to fight through sheer boredom. Though, even Jaune's will to learn was a far cry higher than the last member of their team, for dear Nora had quite nearly knocked herself out into a coma within the first ten minutes of the class by bashing her head against the desk; luckily for her health and the overall mental sanity of her team she simply resorted to drawing things like flowers and animals on what was supposed to be her note-taking paper; occasionally, she would show her work to Ren, who would initially look on in bemusement at the picture before grinning and laughing fondly at Nora's work before looking back towards their lecturer, not wishing to attract any undue attention towards them.

Then, there was Team RWBY, who was in much the same category of interest as JNPR. While Blake and Yang paid dispassionate interest in the lecture but still listened out for anything even remotely important, Weiss busied herself with writing down as much information from the class as possible, no matter how dull or inconsequential it may have seemed. Finally, there was Ruby, who looked like she wished to be anywhere other than here; even being in the company of so many of her friends did little to raise her spirits; though, she did call out to him and try to wave back at him when she noticed him near the beginning of class when she first got bored, though was cowed from trying it again when Port coughed loudly to get her attention once he caught her. And though he didn't do much more than raise an impatient eyebrow at her, it was more than enough to get the point across and she had stayed quiet since.

However, after allowing himself the brief moment of reflection, Gabriel focused back on the present as Port continued on in his' unending tirade.

"Uh." He left off on, seeing the less-than-captivated response his' lecture received, despite all the passion he felt he had put into it. Still, he recovered quickly enough and went on with his' lesson regardless, ultimately unaffected by their apparent indifference on the matter.

"And you shall too upon graduating from this prestigious academy!" He said, waving a hand out towards the class in a presenting manner. "Now as I was saying, Vale, as well as the other three kingdoms, are safe havens in an otherwise treacherous world." It was at this point that he began to saunter back in forth at the front of the class.

"Our planet is absolutely teeming with creatures that would love nothing more than to tear you to pieces. And that's where we come in." He said, pausing in his step to fully face the classroom.

"Huntsmen. Huntresses." He paused, turning suddenly to and clicking flatteringly towards the brazen blonde of team RWBY; her only response was to look away and chuckle cheerlessly, looking visibly uncomfortable at the attention he briefly paid her; Gabriel was probably going to have a word of advice with the man sometime after the class was over, if only to help the man avoid trouble in the future.

"Individuals who have sworn to protect those who cannot protect themselves." He paused, seemingly for dramatic pause. "From what, you may ask? Why, the very world." And with that he raised a hand up inspiringly, the gesture seeming to work on some level as it caused one student in one of the upper rows of the class to suddenly jump in his' seat and cheer. Though, after seeing the uncomfortable level of attention it suddenly brought from the few others in his class, he immediately settled back into his seat and laid back onto his desk just as he was before, everyone's attention promptly leaving him as they turned back to their instructor.

"That is what you are training to become. But, first, a story; a tail of a young, handsome man: Me!" He supplied. Then, he went on to tell his' story, most of those in attendance glancing at him in varying levels of listlessness to follow his' tale; some of those that Gabriel could see were visibly fighting to stay awake, if they hadn't outright fallen asleep by then. Others decided to keep themselves amused, like Ruby who he could see was drawing some sort of picture, each passing moment allowing him to see more and more of it until it became obvious that it was to be some sort of amusing depiction of Port. Once it was finished, she then showed it to her team, blowing a quick raspberry in jest to complement her joke. Unable to restrain themselves, the rest of her team, with the exception of Weiss, quickly devolved into low laughter, Gabriel chuckling to himself as well from his' spot, though they were soon caught and quieted with a purposeful cough from the Professor, and once they had finally quieted down he continued his story almost as if he was never interrupted at all.

"In the end, the Beowolf was no match for my sheer tenacity. And I returned to my village with the beast in captivity and my head held high; celebrated as a hero!" He said, finishing off the story with a slow bow to the class, his' voice nearly quaking in unreserved pride and joy at reliving the memory. Then, leveling back up, Port continued on with his lesson.

"The moral of the story? A true huntsman must be honorable. A true huntsman must be dependable. A true huntsman must be: Strategic, well-educated and _wise_."

During this time as Gabriel absentmindedly bulleted the statements and arranged them into a list to refer to for another time, from the corner of his' eye he could see constant motion from somebody in the row below. Taking his' eyes off his' work, Gabriel took notice of Weiss as she visibly quaked in place, though it seemed it was less from the Port's words and more likely from the target of her gaze: Ruby. Reflecting on the man's words, Gabriel figured that Weiss was having some reservations about the arrangement of her team, or rather who filled the lead position of it; so, not wishing to make things worse by butting himself into their issue, for now he'd simply wait to see how the situation would play out.

"So, who among you believes themselves to be the embodiment of these traits?" And before the statement even had chance the chance to fully settle down from whatever echo it might have created through the room a petite, pale-white hand found itself raised into the air, gathering both the attention of Port as well as those in the class.

"I do, sir!" The tense voice of Weiss responded, her decision resolute as she aimed to prove to not only herself, but her team, the class and even the academy that she was a more than suitable candidate to fulfill the role of being the head of Team RWBY.

And, aware of these motivations or not, Port allowed her to have her chance, calmly stating,

"Well then, let's find out. Step forward and face your opponent."

* * *

 **(Some minutes later)**

After the young trainee had gathered and equipped her 'battle gear', she took her place across the moderately-sized stage at the front of the class and faced her obscured opponent as they still remained locked in their cage; meanwhile, most, if not all, in the class now found themselves sitting up straighter, now that a good old-fashioned duel was set up to spice up an otherwise unremarkable day; Gabriel himself briefly wondered to himself just how much of this part of the 'lesson' was actually permitted; and if this really was all 'official' business here at the Academy, then just how much breathing room did the curriculum have outside of full-on skirmishes with live Grimm in an apparently unsecured room of all places?

Paying rapt attention as the brawl seemed to devolve into desperation, Gabriel couldn't help but feel disheartened at the way Weiss singled-out Ruby as a cause for distraction or general agitation, even if it was over nothing more than simple morale or tactical support.

So, after constant setback after setback, and some unwarranted but not unutilized strategic assistance from Ruby, Weiss was able to flip the Boarbatusk onto its back with the use of her Runes and using yet another permutation of those same powers to launch herself forward she was able to skewer the Grimm, its struggling squeals marking the end of the duel along with its life.

"Bravo! Bra-vo! It appears we are indeed in the presence of a Huntress-in-training!" He said admiringly. "I'm afraid that's all the time we have for today. Be sure to cover the assigned readings. And," He punctuated the word ever so slightly more than usual. "Stay vigilant! Class dismissed." And with that the class was over.

Seeing the writing on the wall, Gabriel needed no further prompting and once the Professor indicated that the course for the day had ended, he got up from his' seat as he saw Weiss stalk off, rapidly pursued by a troubled Ruby.

Reaching the corner of the hall they were in, Gabriel was just barely able to catch the fleeting half of their conversation, if you could really call a heated dispute such, before he stopped just out of sight, lest he make things worse by interrupting the two's conversation.

Scoffing at some unheard point made by Weiss, Ruby immediately went on the defensive and asked, "What did I do?" an indignant tone marking her words.

"That's just it! You've done _nothing_ to earn your position! Back in the forest you acted like a child! And you've only continued to do so!" She said, shifting the slightest bit forward as she tried to drive her point home to Ruby.

Confused and hurt by the girl she thought was her friend, Ruby tried to mend whatever rift was forming between their friendship, as begrudging as it may have seemed to Weiss.

"Weiss, where is this coming from? What happened to all the talk about 'Working together'? I thought you believed in acting as a team?" Ruby asked, pleading to her dear friend, hoping to try to resolve this resentment that her partner seemed to feel towards her.

Weiss took a moment to take a brief breathe, perhaps in an effort to stave off her frustration at her partner, to compose herself or to simply try to gather some patience to continue the conversation civilly; meanwhile, nearby, Gabriel noticed a certain chief of staff traveling down the hall closer towards them and quickly met eyes with him, and without a word exchanged between them Ozpin already gathered a broad grasp of the situation and strolled ever so lightly towards the three student's general location, already beginning to hear the rest of the conversation as it continued to spiral downward.

"Not a team led by _you_." Weiss added, the moment she took to gather herself seeming to cool her anger, though it seemed to go a little farther than that as, revealed in the Heiress' next words, her tone then turned resolute and distant.

" _I've_ studied _and_ trained. And quite frankly, I deserve better!" She said, swiftly turning away from Ruby, the other girl reaching out to her, not only physically, but emotionally as well.

"Ozpin made a mistake." The words, spoken with a frigidness that could freeze rivers and shatter hearts, and that's just what it did to poor Ruby, left standing alone in place while Weiss quietly strolled away without a single regret in the world.

Crushed and unsure of exactly who to turn to in this type of situation, who else more fitting to appear behind her just as she turned to leave than the Headmaster. Surprised, she visibly jumped in place, surprisingly without a single gasp or shout of alarm.

"Hmm, now that didn't seem to go very well." The Headmaster stated calmly, looking for just the briefest of moments at the departing student-in-white before turning his' attention to Ruby.

Hurt and lost, Ruby only wished to find a way to make amends between her and Weiss, to find a way to keep them together as a team, if not as friends. Though, even at this time, she wasn't exactly sure which answer would help bring her there, but there was one at the forefront of her mind that she wished to ask the person responsible for it all.

"Is she right? Did you make a mistake?" She asked, her eyes begging for the answer to which her heart yearned to know, one which only he could provide.

For half a moment, an almost imperceptible laugh escaped from Ozpin's mouth, instantly shadowed by his' ensuing response along with an amused smirk behind it.

"That remains to be seen."

And with those words, Gabriel knew that with Ozpin there to help reassure Ruby of her capabilities, things between her and Weiss would sooner, rather than later, be mended; now that this building issue between them was well on its way to being resolved. So, not needing to bury his' nose any farther into the issue than he already had, the lone paragon of Beacon casually and silently made his' escape; and as he left, a proud and happy smile made its way onto his' face, his' thoughts turning sentimental as he pondered over the idea of two unconventional teammates reconciling after their first big snag in the road in order to build what would most certainly be a solid, lasting friendship.

However, what he failed to notice as he left, behind him a pair of silver eyes caught the slightest bit of movement out of the edge of their vision and while its mind was focused almost solely on the discussion at-hand, curiosity briefly managed to stir their attention away from the wise instructor speaking to her and towards the source of movement. Though, just as she went to look in their direction, they went around one of the corners leading into another hall in the building and simply disappeared. Curious as to who could have nearby during this whole spat, she figured she'd ponder over the matter later, if ever at all. For as of right now, there was a very important discussion she needed to focus back on and there wasn't any way she was going to miss even a single word from it, especially not when it concerned her and her friends.

* * *

 **(Some time later)**

Strolling through the exterior of Beacon and along one of its outer grounds, Gabriel was silently thinking to himself while he briefly took in the layout of the campus, trying to get a general feel for the place now that he had a moment to do so; the only other time he did anything even remotely similar was on his' first day at Beacon when he first searched for the assembly stage while 'time-locked' while Ruby and Jaune were introducing themselves, and even then he only gathered a cursory layout of the vast Academy; there were still a great deal many secrets to be found at Beacon, of that he was sure, but even he knew not to poke around too much, lest he find and wake a sleeping bear, figuratively speaking. So, like now, he was simply just making a mental map of general features like obscure side entrances for maintenance staff, secondary stairways along the sides of some of the school's buildings and/or simply just alternate bathrooms, just in case.

After spotting yet another side entrance marked 'Staff only' leading only to God knows where, Gabriel decided his' exploratory expedition had finally lost all of its usefulness and interest and began making the long walk back to his room, figuring that now since the day was steadily coming to an end, it was time to get back before he collapsed from exhaustion altogether.

On his' way, however, as with all people, his' mind began to wander. Though, instead of the daydreams he would have more than readily welcomed, his' mind instead strayed to a memory from a couple of days ago, but because of the impact it had left on him it felt like he was still there, reliving it all.

* * *

 **[Flashback begins here ~]**

Gabriel had just recounted his' experience with the mysterious figure in the forest, yet as he looked at the motionless form of the Headmaster, he couldn't help but wonder if it would have been a better idea just to stay silent about it all.

However, moments turned into minutes and the head of Beacon still refused to move, seemingly paralyzed by the information provided to him. Whatever it was in particular that caught his' attention, it seemed to leave him with a distant look, his' eyes both fearful yet portraying the look of a man who looked like he was reliving some old nightmare from time's past.

Unsure of exactly how long this was going to last, Gabriel took the last couple of steps between him and the desk. Once he reached it, he slowly waved a hand in the man's line-of-sight while he tried to get his attention.

"Headmaster? Ozpin? Are you okay?" He asked, waiting to see what response awaited him.

For a moment, nothing seemed to happen and just as Gabriel was going to try again to wake the man from his state, Ozpin stirred. It was nearly imperceptible at first, yet the slightest change in tension let him know that the Headmaster slowly began to relax from his' tense state; his' eyes seemed to soften the slightest bit but still kept their weariness, his' hands which had been curled up on his' desk now flattened along its finely-grained wood and generally the man's posture seemed to sag just the slightest bit. After a couple more moments, Ozpin finally seemed to settle down and sagged tiredly into his' seat. And at that point, his' eyes finally turned to face the only other person in the room, holding the younger man in their sight with a frightened look before they turned calm, subdued.

"Headmaster?" Gabriel asked again, uncertain to the man's current thoughts and waiting to hear any explanation as to what exactly he knew about the situation that could cause him to act as he did.

Ozpin seemed to look at him a moment longer, uncertain of how exactly he wanted to respond, though once he decided he let out ragged breath and sat up a bit straighter in his' seat, settling his' hands out before him on the desk.

"I… I'll be fine, Mr. Van Helsing, no need to worry. Though, this news is… troubling, to say the least." He paused, trying to settle the thoughts rampaging through his' mind.

"And what will that mean, exactly?"

"It means… that everything I have come to fear may indeed come to pass." He hesitated for a few moments, silently deliberating over some untold matter within himself before he finally seemed to come to a decision.

"I'm going to have to speak with a few people, get a general idea of where exactly we stand and what we'll do, what we _have_ to do, to ensure our very way of life survives, no matter what. But, once I've talked that over with them, I'll need to speak with you again about another opportunity I wish to offer, this one much more vital and personal to me than your role as your class' representative."

"Of course, if it's as serious as you make out, I'll be here to answer the call, Headmaster. Whatever it may be."

"Thank you, Mr. Van Helsing. Gabriel. But, in the meantime, you need to familiarize yourself with the world as much as you can. I'm not sure exactly how much you've gathered here in your travels all over Remnant, but it'd be a good idea to learn as much as you can about it while I work on my contingencies; if you ever need anything, don't be afraid to ask, we can't afford time for frivolities and we'll both be needing the other's help when the time comes."

Almost shrinking under the man's gaze, Gabriel couldn't help but feel intimidated by his superior's sobering words. Though, while initially afraid to ask, since the man made it a point not to worry about making any sort of request, Gabriel finally decided to ask something he figured was next to impossible for him to receive.

"Can I have staff-level authorization for the Academy?"

"Consider it done, lad." He remarked simply.

Double-taking in his' spot, Gabriel's eyes seemed to bulge nearly out of their sockets.

"Wait, what?! Really, just like that?" He said, almost nearly shouting. His' incredulous voice ringing slightly through the sound of ticking mechanisms scattered all throughout Ozpin's office.

Looking at his' student, Ozpin merely blinked calmly back at him. Not a single trace of hesitation found on him.

"Yes, and please do not shout in my office. You'll make security nervous and I don't wish to deal with them at the moment, not at this hour."

"But… But, why? You don't even know if you could fully trust me, let alone know what I want with it! What if I was an agent of that group I mentioned and I'm just trying to find weaknesses in your defenses and pave the way forward for them?" Gabriel asked, equal parts outrage as well as disbelief.

Bringing a hand up, he raised an index finger. "First off, there isn't much you could get done here, even with staff privileges. Second," He said, raising another finger alongside the first. ", everything here is monitored and we have guards in all of the vital areas of the campus to keep an eye out for tampering." Raising a third finger, he continued. "And lastly, if you really meant to, with the abilities and talents you possess, I'm sure you could end us all in a single moment, and there isn't a single thing any of us could do to stop it." Then, he raised his' arms out to the sides, preparing to present a point. "And yet here we still stand, unharmed and intact. The fact of the matter is that, as eager as you are to point these causes of concern out, up until this point you have not given me a single reason to doubt your integrity, and I truly do regard you with the benefit of the doubt. Perhaps, even, you may come to become my most trusted ally, and I will most certainly not turn down any assistance in this growing time of peril."

"But, sir-"

"Enough!" He said sternly, quieting the young man into place. "Class upon class, year after year, I have sent perhaps hundreds of young warriors to fight for peace. Each and every one of them I have watched grow into the people we needed them to be; I examined their personalities, their traits, their strengths and weaknesses and I have come to know each and every person under my care. Do not think me to be some ignorant fool who knows not what he is doing! Since the first day I met you, and perhaps even before that as I looked over the reports concerning you, I knew the type of person that you were and I know that if you were against us, you'd have made itself evident by now. You are not a man who lingers in the shadows, a blade to be buried within somebody's back; you are not the people in the White Fang and you are most certainly not a member of this hidden revolution. You're better than that."

"I… I don't know what to say." Gabriel said, awestruck. Humbled. Honored.

However, he didn't seem to be quite finished. "You asked for an explanation for my decision, and there you have it." He said, waving a hand forward elegantly. "Just know that you have my trust, and for good reason. There's a lot riding on the choices we make on the road ahead and I can't afford for any doubt right now, not with this looming threat that gathers around us. You are not my enemy, because I know in the end you'll always do what's right and knowing that I am assured you will not misuse these permissions I grant you. Because that's who _you_ are, who you'll always try to be. And, nothing, absolutely _nothing,_ will change that." He paused, then suddenly he began to stand up, almost seeming to be taller than he had ever been before, or perhaps that was just the state of authority he seemed to hold at that moment; in that moment, he seemed to be more than just a simple headmaster; quite simply, he was an instructor, and there was still very much he had left to teach.

Silently, he offered a steady right hand towards the frozen student, who only looked at the appendage with no small amount of uncertainty before he turned his gaze towards the man who offered it.

"Are you with me, Gabriel? Will you stand by us in what will more than likely be our darkest hour? I will not lie to you, the way forward will most certainly be paved with pain, setbacks and uncertainty, and you may lose more than you were ever willing to sacrifice, but I need to be sure that you're willing to accept that and be ready to act when no one else will. I ask this not just for myself, but for all those who will be unable to fight for themselves, because in the end you may be all that'll be left standing between us and utter calamity, young man. So, again, I ask you: will you help me, help _us_ , defend our world?" Finishing the statement, the man slightly shook his' hand up and down slightly, emphasizing the gesture as he leaned forward a bit more, awaiting the young man's reply.

Gabriel looked at the man, then looked at the hand then looked back towards Ozpin again. There, his steady gaze remained for a few, long moments. Then, with just the slightest relaxation of his' eyes letting Ozpin know that the boy had made his' decision, Gabriel's gaze flickered towards the unmoving hand offered to him, its request silence, and without any sign of hesitance or reluctance, Gabriel's hand finally reached Ozpin's and clasped it in a strong, unyielding clasp, one which Ozpin readily matched.

Then, as both men's gazes met the other's, their grips released from one another and they both stood silently across the other, not a single word exchanged between in the silence allowed between the ticks and clanks of the mechanisms of Beacon's clock-tower as they ran rhythmically all around them. Then, with a nod, the quiet atmosphere was broken.

"Then it's decided. I look forward to having you around and seeing what you'll accomplish in your time here, young man."

"I'll try my best not to cause trouble, then, Sir. And, actually, there is one thing I wanted to ask you about while I'm here."

"By all means, let me hear it." Ozpin asked, waiting patiently as he once again took his' seat.

"Can I have a salary?"

…..

…..

…..

"No."

"That's what I figured… I think I'll just let myself out now, excuse me."

"Have a good night, Mr. Van Helsing."

* * *

 **[~Flashback ends here.]**

Gabriel laughed raucously to himself, alone as he traversed the empty hallways in the dorms as dusk set upon the school. Even after his' laughter had subsided, Gabriel still chuckled to himself at the memory. He knew that even after everything, there was only going to be one way that final bit of the conversation was going to end, but it didn't hurt to at least ask about these sorts of things; luckily for him, he wasn't really pining for money at the moment, not with the arrangement he had set up for himself with a certain somebody in Atlas; reminded by the passing thought, Gabriel made note to send a message to the man's people informing them of where to send their next delivery, now that he had a solid place to reside at and receive his' postage from here at Beacon; hopefully nobody would rifle through it before it arrived, lest he find a box filled with nothing but empty dreams and disappointment.

Humming to himself as he pulled out his' scroll to start on the message, he failed to notice the person coming around the corner of the hall until they crashed into him, causing him to stumble in place while the person yelped in surprise as they fell flat on their butt.

Looking down, Gabriel was surprised to see a pair of light blue eyes staring at him in frustration as the person idly rubbed their now-bruised posterior after their tumble. As the person considered him for a moment, their gaze softened to one of mild annoyance as they sighed and got up, dusting themselves off from the carpeted floor of the hall before crossing their arms in front of them angrily.

"Oh, geez. Hey, I'm sorry, Weiss. I was doing something on my scroll and I wasn't looking where I was going, my bad."

"Yes, quite. And fine, apology accepted, just watch where you're going next time, okay?" She asked, turning a tired gaze downward as she let out a relaxing breath while briefly pinching the bridge of her nose, emotionally drained from the day.

"Understood." Then, noticing her down mood, Gabriel went on to ask: "Hey, Weiss. Are you feeling okay?"

"What?" She asked, looking up at him with a face equal parts confusion and annoyance. Though, upon recognizing his' question, her face seemed to relax. "Oh, yeah, I'm fine. Just kind of tired is all, it's been kind of an eventful day for me."

"True enough, it seemed like you had a lot on your mind lately. I hope you were able to sort through it since then."

"Yeah, I suppose I did, I guess." She said, sighing. "Look, I'd rather not talk about if it's alright with you. Learning a bit more about myself hasn't quite placed me in as good as a mood as I would have liked. Besides, I kind of need to make up with somebody back at my dorm, so how about we talk again some other time, if you don't mind?"

"Whoa, hey. Yeah, none taken. Sure, that's fine, you have your own personal business, I have mine, I understand. I'll try not to keep you any longer. But, uh, hey. If you don't mind, I'd like a moment to ask you something before you go, if that's not too much trouble, Ms. Schnee." He asked imploringly.

Unsure of how exactly to respond, stuck between her urgency and her sense of civility, she finally decided which of the two she would stick with.

"Um… yeah, that's fine, I guess. So, what did you need to ask me?"

Smiling in relief at her patience, Gabriel went on to ask her his' question.

"Is Ruby the one you were going to talk with when you got back, Weiss?"

"What?!" She asked, surprise evident through her body's posture. "How do you know-"

"Come on, Weiss. Even Jaune noticed something was up between you two after you left Port's class. There's no need to be upset, I know it isn't any of my business about what happens between your team, I was just asking because I just wanted to give you something to help ease things between the two of you."

"Oh." She said quietly, noticeably relaxing in place, especially now that she knew he hadn't really been snooping into business that wasn't his' own or wasn't planning on teasing her. Though, not completely sure of the latter, her inner sense of cynicism kept her weary while she continued their talk. "So, what did you have for me?"

Chuckling to himself and grinning at her, Gabriel reached a hand around his' back and, with only the slightest of movements to let know that he had grabbed anything at all, once again brought his' hand back out from behind him, carrying with it a white paper cup topped with a simple lid with a slot to drink out of; what contents were in the cup seemed to be fairly hot, if the steam rising up from the slot of the lid was any indication.

Pointing a dainty finger at the object, Weiss commented on the item. "What's that?"

Looking at the cup suddenly, Gabriel then turned a dry, confused look towards her after looking at it for a moment.

"It's a foam cup."

Stomping visibly in place, her face turning red in anger, Weiss turned her hand over, indicating towards the cup once again. "I know that, you dolt! I meant what's _in_ the cup!?"

Forming his' mouth into a silent 'Oh', Gabriel got a better grasp of the item as he subconsciously switched hands with it.

"It's coffee. As you can tell, it's already pretty late and I'm pretty sure Ruby's knocked out by now. This," He said, jiggling the cup slightly within his hand. ", should help wake her up while you two reconcile. Here, take it. Warning: it's kind of hot." He said, walking the few feet between them to hand her the cup, which she tentatively grasped in both of her own and once she was sure she had a secure grasp of it she turned her focus away from steaming container and looked back towards him when he began talking once more. "It's fixed just how she likes it, a cream and 5 sugars."

"But, how do you know-"

"I just know these things. I am one of her best friends, after all. Now, I've taken up enough of your time. I should probably go already, good luck with Ruby, Weiss." And with that, he strolled casually past her, beginning to whistle as he left. Though, with drink in hand, Weiss quickly turned around and called out to him before he could get much farther and out of earshot.

"I… Thank you, Gabriel. I really appreciate it." She said, and though he couldn't see it, she gave him a subdued yet genuinely-grateful smile; though, what she failed to notice was that he too smiled, appreciative of her small note of gratitude.

"No problem, Snow. See you around." And then, with a turn of a corner, he was gone, his fading whistling marking his departure down the corridor deeper into the complex, leaving the young heiress standing in place, holding the now-warm beverage.

Still looking at where she last saw her classmate, she looked back down towards the cup she still held in her hands, watching the steam rise gently from the cup and fill her nostrils with its pleasant scent of bitter creaminess along with a slight twinge of sweetness. Briefly, she cast one last look down the hall before she turned and left down another, going towards her destination at last with the little pick-me-up; and all the while, the small smile from before never left her face.

Meanwhile, once he finally reached his own room, Gabriel sat quietly in the chair of his' desk, leaning forward with his' head in one hand. Leaning his' head slightly back, he turned his' gaze upwards and faced the now darkened skies of Remnant that could be seen through the large window in the room. Silently, he watched the shattered form of the world's moon, looking at it with an empty look as he found himself lost within his' own thoughts.

* * *

 **A/N: I have no valid excuse. But, I will blame For Honor and Dragon Age: Inquisition, both in that order. Now, I need to get back to work, the next chapter should be coming out soon enough. Thank you to all those who choose to take the time to read the story, you help make this story worth writing and I will do my best to try to improve as best as I can in the future as an author.**

 **Until next time, this is The Brutal Legend. Signing off and logging out.**


	15. Worry for Causation

**Disclaimer: Who has two thumbs and doesn't own RWBY? This guy!**

* * *

"Man may have been formed from dust, but we are most certainly not made of stone."-G.V.H.

* * *

 **(Mess Hall, Beacon Academy)**

A pair of silver eyes stared across the room, flicking occasionally to catch the meandering form of the small crowd that formed around the person at its center as they entered through the large doors barring this space from the rest of the academy. Idly, the person to whom the eyes belonged to continued to stare at the ongoing spectacle with a neutral curiosity, the rest of the room doing much of the same as well as the group entered. As the person broke through the crowd, they waved off all the buzzing questions being thrown at their retreating back before they turned elegantly in place and began trotting on backwards, addressing the wavering, listening crowd he was leaving behind.

"-So, yeah. The secret is just to know your own strengths and act on them when the situation arises. Until then, just trust in your team, your skills and your wit and they will help you grow more than you ever could alone, perhaps even farther than what I've done. Good luck, you guys. I'll see you around. Now, if you'll excuse me, I have a date to catch!" And with that, he turned around and left the crowd of fans behind him, the group dispersing in every which direction towards their own spots and groups to hangout in while the man of the hour did just the same.

Walking to the head of the long table where both Teams JNPR and RWBY sat, Gabriel waved a hand towards them as he approached.

"Hey, guys! What's going on?" He asked, taking a seat at the edge of the table besides Ruby and across from Jaune, taking an idle look over the gathered few there while loosening the tie of the uniform he was wearing that day.

Getting a few idle 'Not much's', 'stuffs' and the like upon his approach, he nodded thoughtfully before bringing out a spoon and a bowl of Pumpkin Pete's out from his back; where he had actually gotten it from, nobody even thought to ask. However, as he began digging in to the sugary-delight without a care in the world, someone beside him spoke up before he could become too invested in his meal to hear them.

"Hey, Gabriel. What was all that about?" Ruby asked, jerking a thumb off behind her to the large, double-doors leading into the room.

Looking up from his bowl and towards the direction she'd indicated, Gabriel glanced towards the doors before setting down his bowl.

"Oh, that? Yeah, that was sort of my… 'Fan Club', I guess you could call them." He said in a noticeably uncomfortable tone, pretending to look at something through the large windows leading outside and trying not to squirm in place.

"Wait, what? Since when do _you_ have fans?" Yang asked from her end of the group, having been idly eavesdropping on their talk since Gabriel arrived, having just finished her own meal.

"Weeelll..." He drew out, looking off and to the side before bringing his gaze back towards Yang and inherently the rest of the group as they that halted their chatter upon hearing Yang's question. "… Ever since word of me taking out the Goliath was leaked, _somehow_ , and don't ask because I don't know who did it, people now won't leave me alone anymore; they've even started swarming me almost as soon as I leave the dorms and now all of a sudden I'm being treated like I'm some sort of celebrity!" He said, tossing his hands up into the air emphatically, shaking his head over-dramatically in woe.

"Oh, well… that's good, right?" Ruby asked uncertainly, not quite sure if he was either enjoying or loathing the sudden change in popularity.

"I mean, yeah it's cool, I guess. But now everybody keeps asking me to help tutor them or asking for tips on how to become just as 'great' as a huntsman-to-be as me and stuff like that. I try to be kind and let them down easy by saying that I'm not taking students or doing a program or anything and mostly I just try to give them some general "Fortune Cookie" advice but it's gotten to the point where even _my_ patience is starting to run thin and the last thing I want to do is blow up on them." He vented, where by the end of it he laid down his head in his hands as he leaned forward on the table.

"Personally, I think you're doing a great job in handling things. Just try to be patient, Gabriel, and it'll all fizzle out soon enough and things will all be more or less back to normal in no time!" Pyrrha added from across the table, giving her own trademark thumbs up and smile; though it almost seemed like it was a little bit more forced than usual, but that could have been Gabriel just imagining things.

"Yeah, okay. I'll try my best. Heh, wish me luck, alright?" He looked up, smiling hopefully at her before dropping his face down for a moment. A second later he let out a stress-relieving sigh and straightened back up.

"Anyway, enough crying about that. Anybody have anything interesting they wanna share?"

"Hey, Yeah! I got something! Check this out!" A cheery Nora exclaimed from her side of the table before suddenly donning the guise of a professional storyteller as she began her tale.

"So, there we were in the middle of the night." She began, dragging the words out in a tone of suspension and story-telling allure, one which seemed to captivate a select few within their friendly ensemble, a prime example being Yang, who found herself totally enraptured in Nora's style of presentation.

"It was day." Ren clarified, sitting quietly beside Nora, holding a mug and occasionally drinking from it whenever he was allowed a moment.

"We were surrounded by Ursai!"

"They were Beowolves."

"Dozens of them!" Nora proclaimed loudly, standing up in her seat and drawing the attention of a few outside their table.

"Two of 'em."

"But they were no match. And in the end, Ren and I took them down and made a boatload of Lien selling Ursa skin rugs!" And once she had finished retelling her story, she sat back down at the table with her arms crossed over one another, looking utterly pleased with herself at the memory.

Sighing heavily in mild agitation, less with Nora herself and more with how her quirky nature led to over-exaggerating things for them, Ren went on to clarify what exactly this whole story was about.

"She's been having this recurring dream for nearly a month now."

Yet, no sooner did he finish explaining the reasoning for why Nora's story was so outlandish did another topic cross their group, this time coming from Pyrrha as she turned to speak to Jaune as he sat beside her.

"Jaune, are you okay?" She asked, concern laced throughout the tone of her question.

Lost in some untold reverie, Jaune jolted up in surprise upon hearing his' partner call out to him.

"Huh?" He asked, and after thinking briefly over the words he'd cursorily heard from her, he went on. "Oh, yeah. Why?" He asked, sounding almost unsure himself as he spoke the words, and it did not miss the attention of Pyrrha and the rest of the group who grew concerned about him.

"It's just that you seem a little…" Ruby stalled, rolling her hands around together as she tried to find the right word to use, eventually settling on something a bit more… her. "…Not okay."

Visibly uncomfortable with the way everyone seemed to pick up on his own personal problem, he went on to try to assuage their worry for him by acting as if nothing was really wrong at all.

"Guys, I'm fine. Seriously. Look!" Yet, even as his' smile tried to distract them from the issue, his eyes exposed to everyone around him the very unease he so desperately tried to conceal. However, noise from the next table over drew his attention to not only another incident entirely, but also indirectly leading to the source of all his' troubles now, Cardin; whose group, along with himself, was already beginning to pester a certain soft-spoken Faunus.

Watching the happening, Jaune could only feel unease at sitting so close to the harbinger of his discontent. However, Pyrrha's voice was a welcome distraction from the uneasy sight, until he recalled the topic of their discussion.

"Jaune, Cardin has been picking on you since the first week of school." Pyrrha stated, her features fixed with worry.

Grunting slightly, Jaune turned, almost defensively so, to Pyrrha to address her concerns.

"Uh, who? Cardin Winchester? Nah! He just likes to mess around. Y'know, practical jokes." He said, waving his' arm dismissively to her claims against Cardin, not wishing to push the issue any further.

Ruby, on the other hand, had her own opinion to give on the controversial member of their class.

"He's a bully." She said, not giving any leeway towards any opinion stating otherwise. Still, that didn't stop Jaune from trying.

Scoffing, Jaune tried to downplay Cardin's actions, "Oh please. Name one time he's 'bullied' me.", finishing off the doubtful answer with a fake, humorless laugh.

However, this didn't stop them from trying as they began to list off several situations they had all been firsthand witnesses to with Jaune alone, leaving out countless other incidents which had happened to numerous, unnamed people within their class as well. And once they were done recounting their stories, Jaune finally commented his own take on the matter.

"I didn't land far from the school!" He said, trying, and failing, to retain a glass-half-empty outlook at his own expense.

"Jaune, you know if you ever need help you can just ask!" Pyrrha added, her tone almost begging for him to let them, if not at least her, help him out through this.

"Oooh." An excited Nora exclaimed, jumping up in her seat as a rather fun thought crossed her mind. "We'll break his legs!" Punctuating the statement, there was a visible shine in her eyes as she made her offer, her fists pumped in excitement at the idea.

"Guys, really, it's fine." He said, getting up from his seat with his meal in hand while he continued. "Besides, it's not like he's only a jerk to me. He's a jerk to everyone." And in order to prove the point, a high voice sounded out from beside the group, their attention all zeroing in on Cardin.

"Ow, that hurts!"

The girl, who had previously been trapped by the rough group of delinquents and had since gotten up to leave once again cried out, desperately trying to escape Cardin's grasp as he held one of her long, brown rabbit ears, incidentally keeping the young Faunus in place as she strained to lessen the pain he was putting her in.

Hoping to try to appeal to his sense of humanity, for whatever shred of it there might be with this sort of person, the girl attempted to plead with him.

"Please stop." She said quietly, though the request was met only with an even rougher snag as Cardin pulled her ear towards him, the point of it being proven with his next words.

With an obnoxious laugh, Cardin turned his head towards his entourage, saying, "I told you it was real."

Aside from their ongoing laughter, Cardin's comment was met with, "What a freak.", from the only other cohesive member of their team, though he looked no less smug about their actions than the rest.

Then, without warning, a pained yelp filled the air.

The sudden noise caused everyone in the room to stop what they were doing, all of them turning to see what was going on to interrupt their quiet meals. And what they saw shocked them all.

Using his stopwatch, Gabriel appeared next to Cardin, his hand already in place as it gripped, lifted and curved back one of the fingers on the hand Cardin was using to harass their fellow student.

Silence met the event and nobody even dared to take a breath for fear that they would shatter the moment and miss whatever was going to happen next. Off to the side, the Faunus girl stood motionless, freed from the hold Cardin had on her with the appearance of her unexpected guest. And now, like everyone else, she too watched in shock as this tense moment developed.

Standing with a sense of authority that left no room for argument whatsoever, Gabriel, still with his grip around Cardin's hand, spoke loud enough so that Cardin could hear what he had to say even as he cringed and shrank further into his seat from the pain now racking his arm.

"And just what do you think you're doing, Mr. Winchester?"

"Let go of-"

A pop interrupted whatever else was going to be said, instead whatever words were going to be said next were replaced by a short whimper as Cardin's finger was pushed back a slight increment further in the direction it wasn't supposed to; though, at the moment, it wouldn't be anything permanent… yet.

"Wrong answer, Cardin. Next question: What are you going to do now?"

Looking up defiantly, Cardin smiled at the cold glare directed at him by Gabriel. "Do you have any idea who you're messing with? Who my family is? There's a reason nobody ever does anything against me. So, why don't you just settle down there, tough guy, or else-" Cardin said, grunting out every other word with increasing increments of agony, though a slight twist from the other guy's grip on his own errant finger already had him whimpering once again, only just barely able to keep from yelling out.

"Even if you were related to the King of Vale, that still wouldn't scare me. What matters, here and now, is how you choose to pick your answers and your fights, Cardin. Pick wisely, we don't need you to start losing fingers now, do we? And there are just _so_ _**many**_ to choose from." Gabriel said, wiggling the captured digit for emphasis, getting a pained groan from his unwitting victim in turn. "Now, what you are going to do is apologize to the nice girl for what you did to her as well as for hurting her feelings. Then, I want you to promise not to pull any more shenanigans like this again or I will be forced to find you and we'll have to go through this whole charade all over again. Though, next time I won't be nearly as patient or as civil as I am now. So then, what's your choice, Cardin?" And the look which Gabriel sent Cardin next chilled the man to his core and if he hadn't been afraid of him before he most certainly was now.

"Okay, okay! I'll do it, just wait!" He said with an audible quake in his voice as he turned towards the girl he had, only moments ago, been harassing. And so, in a drastically different demeanor to his earlier behavior he desperately rushed to get the words out before his captor changed his mind about the whole deal. "L-look! I'm sorry! I'm sorry for hurting your ear, alright?!" And when he was only met with a gentle nudge along his nearly misaligned finger, he hurried to say the next words he needed to in order to get out of the situation. "Ah! I-I shouldn't have done that and I hope you can forgive me for what I did. It was wrong of me and I-I'm sorry!" Once he finished saying this, he turned a wary look towards the man which continued to restrain him, who throughout all this had not once relaxed his grip on him in the slightest. "And I-I promise that I won't pull something like this again. A-ah! Bad choice of words! But, really, I mean it! Now please, could you let me go already? PLEASE, you're going to break my hand!" And though he said this with much the same desperation as a man caught in a trap out in the wild would, he dared not move a single muscle.

Around the two, nobody dared move, even Cardin's team who were only just shy of arm's reach from them did not make an attempt to help their leader, else he suffer a far greater punishment than what he was already going through as well as not wishing to be caught by the man either; there was a reason why he, and he alone, was named the 'Supervisor' of Beacon after all, and they did not wish to end up on the other end of his fury as well and so settled on simply glaring at the man while the situation played out.

Gabriel, in the seconds following Cardin's groveling, just continued to stare at the frightened, young man in his grasp, and though he was usually loathe to use force at all for any reason against another human being, he wanted the young man to learn the hard way what his actions could eventually lead to and to understand that at some point, somebody will not stand for his stupid stunts and behavior, and next time they won't be as considerate as he was when they are finally pushed to the limit of their patience.

Shaking himself from his thoughts, Gabriel blinked back into focus and faced the cowering form of Cardin, and without a word he released his grip on the bully's hand and almost instantly Cardin hunched forward over it and covered it with his free hand, checking on it to see if it was still whole and in one piece while massaging the feeling back into it once more. Once he was sure that all it was, was just severely strained and sore, Cardin fixed a hard gaze on Gabriel, who returned the look unflinchingly.

This would have continued for some time, however, the sound of clacking feet met their ears and with only enough time to take notice of the new arrival, both boys were caught unawares as a hand flew through the air before firmly connecting with Cardin's cheek, the force behind it causing Cardin's whole face to turn sharply in reaction to it and stay like that for a good, solid second. Turning back, Cardin raised a frightened hand towards his now-burning left cheek, his entire face showing surprise once he faced and recognized the culprit.

With her hand outstretched to the side, the Faunus girl's face was scrunched in open fury, such was the sight which greeted Cardin. However, upon realizing what she had just done, as well as whatever confidence which had been driving her up until this moment leaving through the hit she gave Cardin, her face suddenly turned to one of utter terror. And, in compliance with her animal-like features she quickly pranced and hid behind the closest solid object, in this case being Gabriel, using him as a metaphorical shield to give her some sense of safety once more.

Watching on in open amusement at the display, Gabriel could only grin as he watched the once-victimized girl take her own small measure of vengeance against her abuser before turning back into much the same, shy girl as before as she turned back to hide behind him now that her nerve had left her. Admiring her with a shred more pride than before for her bravery, he turned back to look towards Cardin, who still held a hand to his face in open shock.

"Well then, that was something. Alright, Mr. Winchester. You better behave yourself, you hear? You do _not_ want me to have to come and find you again if you mess up, because we both know exactly what'll happen if you _break_ your promise." Popping his fingers for emphasis, and Cardin responding with a noticeable wince for each sound he made, Gabriel turned around and left without another word; the young Faunus, however, upon seeing her cover leaving began to panic slightly before turning around quickly to follow, idly looking back over her shoulder to keep an uneasy eye on Cardin for fear that he would try to come after them; along the way she picked back up her untouched meal she'd set aside earlier before her moment of fearlessness had come and gone and now she just wished to get as far from Cardin as she could.

Once the event of the day had finally come to a close, murmuring and chatter once again returned to the room, some of it continuing off from where it had left off while a good majority of it shifted towards the manhandling carried out by their 'Supervisor', and from this even further rumors about him would come to rise; most of it good, some uncertain and all of it interested.

Cardin, only casting an ugly look towards the retreating source of his humiliation, turned back to his table, nursing a sore hand with his tail, so-to-speak, tucked firmly between his legs; meanwhile, the rest of Team CRDL only gave hateful glares towards the departing Supervisor while they left Cardin to simmer down.

Several moments of walking later, Gabriel was on his way back to his group of friends, a pleased smile on his face as he met each of their looks. Though, as he saw that all their eyes were focused on a spot behind him, he stopped a couple tables away from them and turned to see what they were looking at, only to meet the timid, brown eyes of the Faunus girl he had stood up for just moments earlier

"Excuse me." She said in an extremely soft tone, so much so that it was almost inaudible to him, even as he stood only feet away from her. And so, with a noticeable Australian, or Remnant's version of Australia… so Vacuo perhaps, accent she continued. "Hello, my name is Velvet Scarlatina. I just wanted to say thank you. For standing up for me, I mean."

Looking at her in surprise, Gabriel's eyebrows raised at her words. "It was nothing. Really. Somebody had to stand up to Cardin at some point. Sorry I didn't act earlier though, but I'm just glad to see that you're alright."

"Oh, umm. Thank you…" She answered, flustered, her next words coming out in an unsure tone. "Anyway, I mean, still… not many people would have had the courage to stand against somebody like Cardin for someone like me. I mean, I am just a Faunus after all…" She said, playing with her fingers as she found her mind wandering into some rather unpleasant thoughts at these words.

"Hey." He said firmly, taking a step and reaching forward to grab her shoulder gently, causing her to turn her eyes toward him. "Don't say that. Never think of yourself that way. Just because you're a Faunus doesn't make you any less of a person. In fact, I think being a Faunus is a heck of a lot cooler and more interesting than being a plain, boring human. Then again, what do I know?" He said, smiling good naturedly at her.

Blushing, the girl was stunned into silence from the recognition he gave her, something hardly anyone she'd ever known had done before, let alone told her personally. Not knowing what else to say, the young girl scooted back slightly and nervously reached up for and grabbed one of her ears, slowly starting to rub it self-consciously, trying to find comfort in the familiar habit she sometimes resorted to whenever she got particularly flustered over something.

"Anyway, I just hope you realize that you're not just some shy nobody who got lost at Beacon; you're a warrior, a hero, and you helped prove that by standing up to Cardin a second ago; in your own, small way I will admit, but you did it nonetheless!"

Despite the heavy blush she now wore, she was able to tear her sight away from the seemingly interesting sight of the ground below her to give him a hesitant look, one which also seemed to be tinged with a small bit of building confidence. "Do… Do you really think so? I don't know, it just seems like I-" She said unsurely, seeming to shrink into herself as doubt once again began to make itself prevalent in her thoughts, though she was stopped as he caught and shook her upper arm lightly, grabbing her attention once more.

"Look at me, please." He implored her, and once she did he went on. "You're a wonderful girl, I just wish you would see that. And, more importantly, Faunus or not…" He said, pausing as he looked reassuringly at her before he continued. "…you're _you_. And there's no reason for you to ever be ashamed of that."

She just stared at him, her mouth as wide as her eyes as she looked at him in shock. For some odd seconds nothing seemed to happen and just when Gabriel was starting to get worried he might have said the wrong thing, he was just about to open his mouth to try to backtrack a bit and tone down his message a slight bit when she surprised him yet again.

Taking the couple steps necessary to close the distance between them, the girl broke the grasp he had on her arm as she instead wrapped both of her own around his body and hugged him.

Surprised and unsure of what he was supposed to do, Gabriel saw and felt her embrace around him and when he realized what she'd done he calmed down a slight bit before returning her hug. Once she felt his arms encircle her back in return, she snuggled the slightest bit more around him.

"Thank you." She muttered into his chest, just grateful that she had someone outside of even her own team that saw her as something more than just a pair of fuzzy ears. For now, she was content just to stay like that, just smiling to herself.

Meanwhile, Gabriel turned his head down and looked between the girl's soft ears poking against the sides of his face and looked at the girl's head, responding to the girl's words with a soft smile before he closed his eyes as he relished the quiet, tender moment.

Yet, like all things, this touching moment couldn't last forever and after an appropriate amount of time passed the girl released her arms from around him and took a step back. Then, as her eyes met his, there was a feeling of residual warmth between them as she returned his warm look with her own appreciative, grateful one.

"Hey, look. I know you've had a rough day and all, so why don't you grab your lunch and maybe you can relax and sit with me and my friends at our table. I'm sure they wouldn't mind having someone new to talk with anyway." Gabriel offered, tilting his head back slightly in the direction of the table where the group either was focused back on their own conversations or were simply watching the two of them talk.

Giving him an unsure look, she craned her head down to look at the ground, kicking at it slightly as she thought the offer over.

"I… I don't know. I wouldn't want to impose on them or anything-"

"Come oooonnn~" He teased, grabbing her by the arm and dragging her away, giving her barely enough time to recognize she didn't really have much of a choice in the matter, not that she minded it all that much; though, just before she could forget, she quickly grabbed her forgotten tray of food as they passed on by it, surprisingly untouched in spite of all that had just happened in these last few minutes.

On their way there, however, Gabriel had a buzzing question in the back of his mind that he felt he'd ask while they could still talk before they were drawn in into the craziness of the group of two teams; already, he could hear Yang cheering to him from her end of the table and he could just _feel_ the smiles being directed at him from those like Pyrrha and Nora who had known what Cardin had been doing up until now and were glad to see him finally pay for it.

"Y'know, I was just wondering. Where is your team, anyway?" Gabriel asked as he took his seat once more beside Ruby, who was engaged in some conversation with Nora over something about dust-covered war hammers or something, he wasn't sure.

Taking a seat in the now empty space left by Jaune beside Pyrrha, who gave their new guest a brief smile before looking past her with worry as she looked at the departing Jaune, the young Faunus girl considered his question with a small but amused smile as she picked up the first piece of her meal with a plastic spork.

"Well, now that's actually a funny story. You see they…"

And on she went to give her explanation for why she was alone that day and while Gabriel understood it, he couldn't help but shake his head at the unfortunate timing of it all. Still, he got over it quickly enough because as soon as their conversation was finished the introductions were quickly underway as the group welcomed their fellow classmate with, more or less, open arms and soon enough the conversation once again shifted towards the usual jokes, stories and gossip. Meanwhile, Pyrrha and a couple of the others in the group made a conscious effort to include their new member of their table in their talks. And, while initially reticent, Velvet eventually relented and began commenting on some of the things they were discussing, like fashion, a hobby she'd more than likely picked up from the head of her team in their time together, and so on.

And while this happened, Gabriel couldn't help but spot the smile the once-shy and reserved girl now sported in place of the unsure and previously miserable look the girl once had only minutes earlier. While this didn't seem like much, Gabriel took pride in the fact that in spite of all the great and not-so-great things he'd experienced and done so far, that the effects of being just a little bit braver and taking just a bit more action seemed to leave the greatest impact of all on those who would witness it; and it would be this lesson that he would do well to try and remember from then on, for better or for worse.

* * *

 **(Some time later, Location-Beacon Academy Library)**

Feet clacking against the floor, writing utensils taking tallies and writing notes on paper, pages turning and settling into place as hands manipulated them and the occasional hushed whisper or coughs-these were the sounds which marked the presence of anything going on in the room otherwise silent building.

As light shined in through the room from the large, paneled windows which adorned the expansive walls of the room, some people wandered about, looking for whatever tools necessary to help them complete their literary or historical work assigned to them. Nearby, others were seated, silently working on whatever tasks awaited them.

And while some of the latter either had no problem with their work or tried their hardest to work it out, there were a select few who decided to swallow their pride and went to ask for help. So, while most would usually go to a friend or teammate, some who had access to neither felt compelled to ask a person of renowned prowess nearby for help.

Thus, as a young, fairly nondescript girl got up from her seat and collected her belongings, she beamed at the person across from her who had helped her understand the elusive subject known simply as: Math.

"Thank you for your help, Mr. Supervisor! You have no idea just how long I was stuck on that page, it was a nightmare!" She said, looking utterly grateful for helping her get her work done which she had, up until this point, been at an impasse with, almost to the point of tearing out her own hair.

"I know, I had the same issue at first too. I'm just glad I was able to help you work it out."

"Oh, you have no idea!" She paused as her scroll chirped aloud in her bag, catching her attention and causing her to fish it out. Looking at it, her eyes widened and she quickly tucked it back into its pocket. As her eyes looked back towards him from his spot at the table, she gave him an apologetic look as she rushed to gather and put away her things.

"Sorry for the rush, I forgot that I had sparring practice. Anyway, again, thank you so much for the help! I promise I'll make you proud, Sir!"

"Hey, the only person that you should worry about proving yourself to is, well… yourself. But, I get what you mean and I'll hold you to that." He said, giving her a casual thumbs up along with a smile.

"Yes, sir. Anyway, goodbye, I'll see you around!" And with that and a departing wave, slinging her bag over her shoulder, she pranced around him and left towards one of the nearby exits.

Watching her over his shoulder, he saw her grab the handle of the door leading outside and with a push it gave way to her advance. In the contrast of the light between the shade from inside versus the direct sunlight outside, all he saw was the general shape of her body leave before it was swallowed by the blinding rays of the sun, then the door swung shut and she vanished from his sight entirely.

With nothing else more to do, he simply lazed back and just continued to look in the general direction where the girl left. Heaving a sigh and closing his eyes, he was just about to start to think over when the delivery for his benefactor was supposed to arrive when the sound of a chair being moved roused him, causing him to open his eyes once more to look at the source of the nearby sound.

"Hey, fancy meeting you here."

Eyes widening in surprise, Gabriel looked towards the person who was now sitting across from him. Though, when their words registered in his head he couldn't help but grin and let out a subdued chuckle at the comment. Crossing his arms, he faced them with a look of open intrigue as he tried to figure out the reason for his acquaintance's sudden visit.

"So it is. So, what brings you down to my domain?" He said, giving the person a playful look once he started to play along a little bit, if just for this one moment longer.

"Oh, this and that." They paused for a moment, then smiled a bit before giving him a slight look of mischievousness. "I saw that girl you were with by the way. Friend of yours?" They asked as they leaned forward on their arms as they rested on the table.

Gaining a more subdued look, he slouched in place as he answered their question. "No such luck, we actually just met. Nice girl, really polite. Not much else to tell other than that."

"So, I'm guessing there's nothing going on there then, right?"

"Not really. Actually, all she wanted was some help trying to work out a formula from one of the Professors. Nothing too bad, she just had a couple questions here and there but she was able to work it out on her own in the end so at least she can do it on her own whenever it comes up again." Pausing, he sighed, closing his eyes once more before they opened once more, looking infinitely more tired than before.

"Unfortunately, she wasn't the first person I've had to 'help' so far, let alone today." Suddenly, a wry grin curved along his face, almost unsettling the person sitting across from him due to the sudden contrast in attitude it gave from him only a moment ago.

"Y'know. When the Headmaster offered me this position, he said that people were going to come to me for guidance. I didn't realize that meant that I was going to end up spending all of my time tutoring kids on how to do their math homework." He said, bringing up and rubbing his hands into his temples, trying to knead out the tension which slowly but steadily grew at the thought of all the work he had to rehash over and over, time and time again.

"How can you call them kids? You're the same age as them. Some might even be older than you are!" They questioned, tilting their head to the side slightly in confusion.

"Yes," He said slowly, almost menacingly so and the person began to think that they might have crossed a line with him somehow. "But at least _I_ can do math all on my own. And by the rules of social hierarchy that makes me infinitely more mature than everybody else."

"…I… don't think it really works like that, Gabriel. Still, in spite of your complaints, I think you really do enjoy helping these other students along. I admire the fact that you're willing to take the time help them out in the first place, even with something as tedious as their homework. You can just as easily send them to their teachers or to somebody else that can help them, but yet you still seem to try to do right by them, regardless. While it may not seem like much, this proves that the Headmaster made the right choice in picking you, at least that's what I think."

Not daring to face them after hearing those touching words in spite of his grumbling, Gabriel couldn't help it as a smile found itself gracing his face. Mustering up what bit of humility he could, he looked up to face the person behind his sudden change in outlook on the situation, his dark-brown eyes meeting their own vivid, green ones.

"… You really are too kind, Pyrrha; even when I complain you still find a way to find the good in it. Anyway, I don't think you came here just to give me a pep speech after hearing me whine about my efforts. Honestly, what brings you here?" He said, folding his hands together and laying them down in front of him on the table, quietly and patiently waiting on her for an answer.

However, after several moments passed as she looked at the table between them without saying a word, Gabriel was just about to ask her about the issue once more until she suddenly spoke up of her own accord, interrupting him before he had the chance to let out even a single word.

"… It's about Jaune…"

"Oh?" He asked, intrigued, leaning a bit more forward to better hear whatever she had to say on the topic.

"Yeah, things… didn't quite go so well with him the other day."

"Really? What happened?" He asked, worry evident in his words.

"Well, we were talking and as you know Jaune isn't exactly the most… imposing boy in our class. Things were already rough enough with him trying not to fall asleep in the middle of class, now everybody just considers him a pushover after seeing him go up against Cardin and it just makes me so angry to hear people say these things about him when I know he is so much more than that! I just know it!"

As this conversation went on, and unbeknownst to them up until it happened, Pyrrha grew more and more passionate until finally her voice rose to a level just above speaking volume, which in this quiet place echoed slightly throughout the large room, causing the eyes of everyone in there to turn towards her while she stood up over the table, talking less to Gabriel and more like declaring a point to the world in particular. After taking a brief look around, Gabriel saw the looks of everyone around the area and turned back to Pyrrha, motioning her to follow him before someone of a higher authority was called to investigate the commotion. Ducking her head in embarrassment, she quickly tried to catch up to him as he strode away through the same doors he had been looking at when she first approached him.

Going through the doors and letting them slowly drift to a close behind him, Gabriel walked to a nearby bench situated beside a good-sized patch of freshly-cut grass and took a seat. As Pyrrha took her own seat beside him he motioned to her with a rotating gesture, silently asking for her to continue her tale of her own volition, now that there was nobody there for them to disturb or listen in on them.

Coughing to gather her train of thought, after a couple seconds Pyrrha recalled the point where she left off in her story, her stature showing visible signs of both unease and steadily-building frustration as she once again recapped on what had happened with her and Jaune.

"So, the other night I offered him some lessons to try and help him get started. But, then he started to take it the wrong way. Like I was offering him some sort of charity or that I was demeaning him by offering my help. Then, he just _blew_ up on me!" She said, equal parts outrage and indignation.

"He made it this whole self-righteous thing. That he was tired of being made out to be the fool ever since what happened in the Emerald Forest with him getting stuck in that tree!"

And while in most other circumstances Gabriel would have been smiling at the memory of Jaune in such a spot, the seriousness of the situation kept that instinct at bay, to the point where his lips didn't even twitch the slightest bit while Pyrrha continued.

"And so, because of that and the fact that he was descended from a line of great warriors, it was _somehow_ up to him and him alone to find the answer. And when I tried to reach out to him he pushed me away and told me to leave him alone. Me, the only person willing to stand up for him and help him up whenever the world decides to push him back down! All I've _ever_ wanted to do was be there for him! Why does he have to be so infuriating!" As she said this, her features soon seemed to mimic slightly the tone which her hair gave off, a searing fury which twisted her features into a blistering scowl. Luckily for her listener he wasn't the target of her focus since her gaze seemed to be centered off to the left, looking away towards nothing in particular while both anger and discipline fought for control within her body at these thoughts.

Watching her shake in barely-contained resentment at the issue, Gabriel looked on calmly at the emotion-stricken girl, watching the once-invulnerable Pyrrha Nikos, Champion of champions, be so distraught over somebody that anybody, aside from those who actually knew him, would figure to be leagues beneath her. Yet, the truth of it all was plain to see for anybody willing to look for it and once he saw it for himself he spoke out to her to try and settle her mind.

"You really do care about him, don't you?" He asked rhetorically, giving her a neutral look which betrayed nothing of his own personal feelings on the subject.

"Of course I do! He's my teammate, my friend! I would do anything for him!" She said, turning her gaze towards him with harsh eyes, though they seemed to soften just the slightest bit as her eyes fully settled on him, her realizing that he wasn't responsible for the feelings raging through her then and thus trying to keep them under control.

"And he would do the same for you too. Wouldn't he?" He replied.

"Well, yeah sure. But, that's hardly the point when he-"

"So you have faith in him, right?"

"Yes! Which is why I can't understand why he feels like I-We can't help him! That we just want to help!" She replied, her fingers tensely gripping the bench seat below her.

"Which is why you should continue to believe in him. Trust that he can work his way through this uncomfortable situation he's found himself in and find what he needs in order to grow into the warrior, the person, he wishes to be. I know you're angry, I understand. I would be pretty miffed too if I had to deal with Jaune as he is right now. But, being angry about it isn't going to fix anything. My advice is just to leave him be for the time being, or else you might risk just pushing him away even more before you even have a chance to make your point." Gabriel paused, his tone of voice changing to a slightly slower pace and perhaps a notch quieter than just a moment earlier. "Honestly, Jaune is a lot of things: He's awkward, clueless and overall he's just a bit too green for his own good."

"Hey-"

"But," He said, punctuating the word as if it were a judge's gavel, striking against the mahogany desk of justice. ", he's also: Courageous, tenacious, and unwaveringly adamant about taking care of the people closest to him. So, I just want you to know that no matter what you may be thinking right now, that despite how he's acting and what's happened with you two, he will ultimately make the right decision and he _will_ come back to you. I'm sure of it."

Then, for a while there was just silence. Neither of them making any remark or gesture other than the long look shared between them. While Gabriel seemed to remain neutral as he thought over and considered the situation, Pyrrha's once conflicted expression slowly gave way to realization and soon all that was left was a calm expression on her face and a tired look in her eyes. Once she settled down, she closed her eyes and tucked her head down slightly as she thought over his words.

Letting out a relaxing sigh she opened her eyes and tilted her head back up to look at him, watching his face as if looking for any sort of doubt in his expression or general appearance and coming up blank in that regard.

"Okay." She said slowly, sighing quietly once more. "I'll be patient. I'll try not to push the issue any further with him. I just hope he doesn't do anything in the meantime that he'll regret; the last thing I want is for him to get hurt while he sorts this whole thing out." She said somberly, looking downward briefly before lifting her eyes back to him once more.

"He'll be alright, Pyrrha. And you will too. Just give it time, try not to dwell on those feelings for long, they don't suit you." He joked, smiling disarmingly at her.

"Hmm," She hummed before suddenly started to chuckle, bringing a hand softly over her mouth out of habit. ", alright. I'll try not to…" There was a pause as she gave him an embarrassed but thankful smile. "Thank you, I know I dumped a lot on you and I'm sorry about that. It was just a bit personal and I didn't know who to talk to about this and when I saw you I just-"

"Hey, Pyrrha. Don't worry about it. I'll always be here for you, you know? You're my friend and just like you I don't like to see the people that I'm close to and care about hurting; your pain is my pain, so don't try to be a jerk like Jaune was and try to keep it all to yourself. Just like now with you, he'll realize there are people in his life that are willing to listen and shoulder his burdens and he'll realize what an idiot he's been to you to push all that support away. Just be ready for when that time comes, alright?"

Giggling to herself again, she relented. "Of course, _Mr. Supervisor_. And thank you, it means a lot to me to know that you're here for me as well. It's good to have friends, you can never have too many right?" She paused then, seeming to perk up considerably at some unseen thought.

"Geez, guess his quirks are already starting to rub off on me; I'm starting to sound like him now." She said, smiling and shrugging at the words, though she didn't seem to be bothered about it in the slightest, perhaps she even preferred the slight development.

Sticking his tongue out jokingly in return to her jab at his title before his face finally settled on a large smile once his moment of mock-insult was over.

After this, Gabriel turned their talk towards more casual conversation, an act which Pyrrha was silently thankful for after the high-stress talk they just had, and the two carried on quietly for some time after. Talking, laughing and bantering their time away until their responsibilities would eventually call them away once more.

But, until then, for now these two could just chat and laugh and live like the two youths they were, for just these short, few moments they still had together.

* * *

 **A/N: Gonna cut this short. Planning on explaining the hiatus, of sorts, in the next chapter-which I plan to release in the immediate future. So, more on that front soon.**

 **P.S. I had a lot of fun coming up with that sudden retaliation with Velvet after the big confrontation moment was over. I hope in the actual show Velvet gets a chance to shine a bit more in the future. Though, I guess what happened at the end of Volume 3 was pretty awesome! ^-^**

 **Anyway, until next time. This is The Brutal Legend, logging off and signing out.**


	16. The Culmination of Persecution

**Disclaimer: Same old song and dance… unfortunately for you, I only know how to do the 'Shepard shuffle'.**

* * *

"I want you to understand something-I don't care about what you do or what you want, it should only matter to you. Because, in the end that's all that ever matters. So, by the end of it all, I want you to ask yourself this: Was all that you attempted to do, all that you committed and sacrificed in the pursuit of it, worth it… Was it?"-G.V.H.

* * *

A group of people trudged through a reddened forest, looking in every direction and seeing nothing but the same sight since their arrival. Still, that did not stop them from sating their curiosity and admiring the beauty of the pristine forest around them. While this happened, a voice from the head of their large group made itself known to the rest.

"Yes, students," The person behind the voice said, idly noting the awestruck looks of several of the people in their group as they walked through the forested area. ", the forest of Forever Fall _is_ indeed beautiful. But we are not here to sight-see." The voice was then revealed to be Glynda Goodwitch, elegantly through the shallow piles of red leaves that adorned the forest floor and doing as she had previously advised and keeping a watchful eye for any signs of danger.

"Speak for yourself." Grunted someone in a white cloak beside her while they looked off to the side and watched the gorgeous view of an endless expanse of red leaves for as far as anyone could see, their hands casually behind their head as they walked forward. The remark, however, was taken to its full effect and more, earning him a disapproving glare from the fair-haired instructor and luckily for him that was the extent of her wrath as she refocused back on her briefing and continued to explain the purpose for the trip.

"Anyway, as I was saying. Professor Peach has asked all of you to collect samples from the trees deep inside this forest. And I'm here, along with our esteemed colleague, to make sure that none of you die while doing so." At the end of this, she stopped in place and swiveled on her heel, turning to face the wide column of wide-eyed trainees as they awkwardly stopped before her, one or two of them ending up colliding with whoever was in front of them at the abrupt halt as they were distracted by the calming environment around them.

"That's kind of a dark way of putting it, isn't it Professor?" Gabriel commented from beside her as he turned his focus away from the familiar feeling the leaves left him with and towards her, giving her a scrutinizing look for her wording of their task.

"I'm just stating the truth, Mr. Van Helsing. Plain and simple. Now, I would appreciate it if you did not interrupt me any further, please." She stated, a silent command present within her otherwise polite response.

"Understood, ma'am. Just putting that little thought out there is all. Excuse my rudeness." He stated in an authentically polite manner, the tone surprising her considering how he had been acting with her since they had first met. Appreciating his courtesy, she decided to let go of the slight bit of animosity which was beginning to form against him and calmed back down to her previous disposition.

"Thank you." She said gently, nodding briefly towards him in acknowledgement before turning to the column which silently waited on her. "Now, as I was saying: Each of you is to gather one jar's worth of Red sap. However," she said, her words taking on a distinctly more urgent tone to them. ", this forest is full of the creatures of Grimm, so be sure to stay by your teammates. We will rendezvous back here at 4 o'clock. Have fun." She said, punctuating the last bit with a surprising amount of pep for someone of her poise. Regardless, at this everyone in the group began to split off in their own, distinct groups or pairings as they went about completing their task, leaving the two members of staff, relatively speaking for at least one of them, alone to mark the rendezvous point.

"Well!" Gabriel said, clapping his hands together suddenly and startling Glynda with the abrupt noise. "I believe you can handle things from here on out, Professor Goodwitch. If you need me, I'll be around. Right now, I need to keep an eye out on that little task the Headmaster wanted me to check out while I was here. You can call me on my scroll if anything comes up. Anything you wish to add before I get going?" He asked, turning to look towards her for her two cents.

"Just be careful out there, you never know what you might end up running into." She advised, adjusting her glasses daintily with one hand while the other kept a hold on the large scroll pad she brought with her to keep an eye on things back at the academy.

"Thanks for the concern, I'm just glad to know that you care." He remarked, getting nothing for it except the same old, neutral stare which was ever-present with her. Coughing uncomfortably at her reaction, he went on to add, "I'll try and be careful then, Ms. Goodwitch. I'll be leaving you to it. See you at 4, then." And with pocket-watch in hand, he blurred away into nothing, leaving the Professor with nothing but the quiet beauty of the forest and her own thoughts to occupy her.

Looking at the spot where her new pseudo-colleague once stood, she closed her eyes and shook her head wearily side-to-side at the thought of his peculiar demeanor.

"I'll never understand what Ozpin sees in him." Then, opening her eyes, she walked off a short distance, coming to a stop and leaning her back against a random tree, opening and beginning to tap on the screen of the scroll she was carrying while she went about getting some work done now that she had a moment to spare to herself.

* * *

 **(A short time later, somewhere nearby)**

"Cardin, what's going on?" A boy said, laying prone on a hill along with 4 other members of a familiar group, all of them watching as the various other teams sent with them completed their tasks, all of whom were oblivious to their presence.

"…Payback." The older boy beside him said, his eyes focused on one person and one person only.

"Pyrrha…" He gasped lowly in despair, dazed as he saw just where the other boy's gaze was focused, turning his head towards his teammate as well once he got the basic gist of what Cardin intended.

"What are you-" Jaune began to ask, trying to figure out exactly what Cardin had planned for her but before he could get much further on it he was interrupted by the boy himself.

"That's the girl: Red haired know-it all, think she's so smart!" The aggressive boy listed off in an irritable tone, reaching a hand towards his back and bringing out a small, worn-looking box with a large, drawn "W" on it.

"Alright, boys. Last night, old Jaune here managed to round up an entire box full of Rapier wasps. And now, we're going to put them to work." He said as he brandished the box, looking at it the same way someone would look at an old tome, filled with the answer to all the world's problems; unfortunately, Jaune didn't quite see it that way as, once he was mentioned by name, he chuckled nervously for his unwitting part in Cardin's slowly unveiling plot.

"Now, according to one of the essays you wrote for me last week: These nasty things looove sweets! I'm thinking it's time we teach _her_ a thing or two." Finishing this, Cardin and the rest of his team rose up from their spots situated along the small ridge overlooking the rest of the gathered teams. And once he had stood up, Cardin offered a hand towards Jaune as he still remained prone. Hesitantly, Jaune looked at the offered hand before taking it, roughly hoisted up to stand beside Cardin where before he knew it one of the jars of sap he had collected earlier for him and the team was thrust forward into his hands. At this point, Cardin once again spoke to him.

"And you're gonna do it."

"Do what?" Jaune asked, unsteadily cradling the lidded jar in unsteady hands.

"Hit her with the sap! Either that, or I'll have a chat with Goodwitch and you'll be on the first airship out of Beacon." Cardin said, intimidating Jaune further by leaning right in his face as he spoke every word, poking Jaune forcefully in the shoulder for emphasis as he finished the looming threat Jaune now had to face, a proposal he was sure the younger boy would certainly not refuse.

Then, with the threat of being expelled hanging precariously over his head, Jaune looked down at the Jar which he held uncertainly within his hands and shifting it; idly, he knew that this large glass filled with jelly was the only thing standing between having his place at Beacon secured, albeit in unfavorable circumstances with Cardin looming over him during the rest of his stay there, or the complete and utter shattering of his dreams once word got out of his forgery, where it was all but certain he'd be shipped home to his family in disgrace.

With these thoughts, Jaune took an unsteady look up from the glass towards Team CRDL, where the only thing that awaited him was the anticipated looks of the four members of the team as they waited for Jaune to carry out their unpaid vengeance against the top student of their year.

So, seeing these looks, Jaune slowly turned around back towards the disparate groups of students below as they casually collected their sample from the trees around them. With her in his sights, Jaune slowly reared an arm back, preparing to cast forward the breakable item with all his might. And, just as this was happening, Cardin went on to add one last detail of his developing plan to Jaune.

"Oh, and when we're done here, you're going to help us lure out and take that meddling Supervisor down a peg or two. But, we'll get to that later. So, just hurry it up, will you?" Cardin commanded, crossing his arms over one another while he waited for the results of his carefully-considered plan at the moment.

Upon hearing this along with finally seeing Pyrrha while she obliviously carried out her task, Jaune's desperate resolve began to waver and soon enough he began to hesitate, wondering to himself why exactly he was doing this? If the reasons for his actions right now were really worth hurting not just his pride in having to work for Cardin from here onward, but ruining the relationship between him and his team. But more than that, it would utterly destroy the trust he had so carefully created with his teammate and closest friend through all of this, Pyrrha.

Then, as his hand began to shake from the doubt he was feeling, Pyrrha turned to look at something nearby to the side of her and upon Jaune seeing her pure expression, things finally clicked together and his decision was made.

"No." He said, closing his eyes and bringing his arm, and the jar which was still with it, to his side. His tone and posture resigned for what would ultimately come next.

"What did you say?" Cardin asked incredulously, to the point where he twisted his body slightly forward, aiming his ear towards Jaune, almost unsure if he had simply just misheard what the blonde-boy had said; behind him, the rest of Team CRDL shifted in place, ready to act on their leader's behalf upon hearing Jaune's comment.

"I said…" Jaune answered under his breath, his hand tensing with far more resolve now than it had up until this point.

"…No!" And then, he turned back, the arm holding the jar reared back once more.

And a moment later a glass jar flew through the air, swiftly followed by the sound of that same jar shattering against something solid-something now very, _very_ angry.

And upon realizing the latter bit, as well as exactly _who_ he had crossed, Jaune visibly shrunk in place, bringing his arms in front of him as he saw the aftermath of what he had done; though, other than that initial feeling, he didn't regret his decision in the slightest.

Cardin, however, while in a general state of disbelief, looked utterly amused at the other boy's actions. Already, he could smell the tangy, sweet essence of the trees around them as it remained smeared over the crest emblazoned on the chest of his armor, and it only reminded him further of the futility of the Jaune's actions against him in that moment.

"Oh-ho-ho," He chuckled slowly, less out of laugher and more as an extension of the sense of amusement he got from the incredulity he felt towards the situation. ", you've done it now."

Then, without a word, two members of Cardin's team marched towards Jaune, each situated beside him as they each placed an arm on one side of Jaune, keeping him in place for their leader.

Eyes widening in fright, to the extent of being considered comically so, Jaune could do nothing but watch as Cardin's light-hearted look twisted into one of pure malice, a look which steadily began to grow as Cardin himself began to draw nearer and nearer with every second.

Then, an audible smack rang through the air, accompanying a strong right fist which made contact and had Jaune flying backward and out of the grip of the two accompanying members of Cardin's team. With Jaune in their leader's sights, the other three members stood quietly behind Cardin as he already began his assault, idly keeping a lookout for any of the other people attending this trip in case any decided to show up.

Knocked backwards onto the cold, uneven ground of the forest, Jaune sat uneasily in place as he tried to recover from the strong hit Cardin gave him. Though, he only barely had the time to look up at his oppressor before he found himself gripped in one of the larger boy's hands, the other reared back and then sent forward to connect with Jaune's face, knocking him backward once more with an audible grunt of discomfort.

"You know that wasn't very smart, Jaune-y boy." Cardin commented from his position, standing over Jaune who laid in an ungraceful heap between the other four boys crowding around him. Then, reaching down, Cardin grasped Jaune with his right hand and pulled him up, practically with ease; a fact which silently terrified Jaune, but after all that he had been put through in these recent days since Cardin's deal, and then some, Jaune wasn't going to let him have the satisfaction of that or anything else Cardin would find delight in from him; To him, one way or another, this whole situation needed to come to an end, on _his_ terms.

"I'm gonna make sure they send you back to mommy in teeny, tiny pieces." Cardin said as he then gripped Jaune in both hands, using the new hold he had to bring Jaune closer as he threatened him. And, while he was hoping to see something resembling despair in the lankier boy's face, he was almost taken aback by what Jaune said next.

"I don't care what you do to me." Jaune replied rebelliously, hoisted in Cardin's unyielding grip while his head remained lolled from the beating it took just a moment before. Then, driven to show the extent of his dissent towards Cardin, Jaune righted himself as best as he could, dangling in the air as he was, and looked Cardin in the eye, a fierce look in his deep, blue eyes.

"But you are not messing with my team, _or_ my friends." He added in a tone reserved only for the bravest or perhaps the most foolish of people, especially considering the state of his situation. And, perhaps for what it was worth, something resembling respect might have flared across Cardin's thoughts at Jaune's words, but it evaporated almost as quickly as a drop of water landing upon a searing-hot pan.

With a tone of evident confidence and revulsion at Jaune's words, Cardin indelicately put some distance between Jaune and himself, and looking him in the eye with his own harsh look to counteract Jaune's own look of unwavering resistance, he decided to give Jaune a piece of his own mind.

"What? You think talk like that makes you tough?" He asked with great incredulity, as if the very notion Jaune was now expressing was nothing more than a myth. And to somebody like Cardin, it may as well have been just that. Then, hoisting Jaune up even farther and more roughly, Cardin continued.

"You think you're a big, strong man now?" He asked, noticeably angrier than before as he tried to dominate the situation once more by trying to frighten, or at least shake, Jaune and weaken his composure.

Though, when Jaune only gave him a small grunt in victory as well as a cocky grin, Cardin, it seemed, had finally had enough.

And so, with a roar of coarse anger, Cardin reared his hand backwards and almost in the same motion used that energy and shifted his body forward, bringing that same fist back which wasn't holding Jaune and aiming it right towards the boy's cocky-looking face, intending to knock him out cold in one, fell strike.

Yet, as fist met face once more, light seemed to engulf the area instantly, followed suddenly by the sound of something cracking.

Dropping Jaune onto the ground, Cardin gripped his now throbbing hand with the other, groaning in evident pain after having felt the effect of Jaune's aura as it fully awakened. At that same moment, Jaune watched as a bright sheen glistened from one hand across the other, now coming to realize that in that moment of declaration, Jaune had finally unlocked his soul's full potential and with it the full extent of his aura as a whole. Though, he barely had the time to relish in this new discovery before he was roughly shoved forward by a foot from behind, again found groveling at the feet of his oppressors as he looked up at their sneering faces, though he wouldn't let them have the satisfaction of seeing him squirm in spite of all their efforts up until now. Especially not with all the progress he had made with himself thus far.

Stomping a couple steps forward, Cardin decided to challenge Jaune's new sense of confidence, intending to, in one way or another, knock Jaune back down to the chasm of hopelessness he had first found and kept him in since this whole charade between them had begun.

"Let's see how much of a man you really are."

Then, suddenly, a roar from behind the standing group of boys caught all their attention, causing them all to turn around to face what had suddenly come upon them; though, they were all fairly sure they had an idea about what it could have been.

Charging at them, an Ursa-Grimm far larger than any that they had ever crossed before came to a stop before them, observing them. The Grimm, it seemed, was a veteran of sorts when it came to the Grimm from what they could see of it: its back embellished with a countless set of bony spikes, its two pairs of legs randomly adorned with boned-plating and a mask whose design might have been a line or more intricate than its lesser brethren scattered throughout the world.

The boys all stalled in place, unsure how to act against such an abrupt and grave threat, not actually expecting anything to show up during the trip, especially now of all times.

Eyeing the creature in visible fear, the boys all tensed noticeably as the large Grimm suddenly stood up on its hind legs, raising itself until it seemed to stand nearly twice its previous height. For a brief second, it took its eyes off the group of boys as it then raised its snout into the air, catching a passing scent and trying to gather it by giving it a couple, good whiffs. Then, it looked back down towards the group once more, this time towards the source of the sweet, pungent aroma that was coming off one of the members of the group in particular, an unfortunate fact which Cardin soon began to realize as he watched the Grimm's eyes focus and lock solely onto him.

Dropping back down onto the ground on all-fours, it let out a growling roar, directed right into the face of Cardin Winchester, who remained motionless in the face of the creature.

At the sound, the other members of Team CRDL turned tail and ran in the complete opposite direction from the Ursa, one of them making a passing remark of "That's a big Ursa!" as they left, leaving Cardin all alone to stand and face it.

Seeing its target of interest divided from all the rest, the Ursa took the chance to try and weaken its prey and sent a large, furred paw towards Cardin, knocking the young boy away and to the left of the Grimm, further isolating him from the rest by putting its body between him and the only remaining being in the clearing, Jaune.

Following the boy as he was thrown aside, the Grimm advanced until it was just feet in front of Cardin. At this point, from behind his back, the boy brought out his signature metallic mace in an effort to fight against the enclosing Grimm. Though, with barely any effort at all, the Grimm swung a heavy claw right towards the boy, swiping the weapon out of his' hand where it came to a stop at Jaune's feet some distance off.

Looking at the weapon in alarm, Jaune watched as the Grimm advanced on the defenseless form of Cardin still seated on the ground. Now free from CRDL's clutches, Jaune watched as Cardin quickly got up to try and escape the Grimm, its attention focused away from himself. Realizing this, Jaune looked back in the direction where Cardin's team had left and he briefly pondered the idea of just leaving Cardin to his fate, having suffered at their hands for days now and finally having a chance to well and truly be rid of those problems along with Cardin. Immediately, the thought revolted Jaune; while Jaune knew he wasn't quite the hero he wanted himself to be, by no means was he, Jaune Arc-son of legends past and potential Huntsman, a coward. And so, knowing that this was perhaps the stupidest decision he'd ever make, Jaune eventually decided on doing something that was just a little bit foolish but also something that was equally, if not a tad bit more, brave.

So, as the Ursa Grimm once more followed Cardin across the small clearing they were in and prepared to cast a final, heavy swing to finish him, Jaune acted.

A claw flew through the air, then was stopped with the sound of clanging metal.

As Cardin waited for the strike to hit, when nothing happened after a couple, tense moments he opened his eyes only to be met with the unexpected sight of Jaune, not even his own team, coming to his defense against the large Grimm. As he looked towards the Ursa Grimm he was shaken as it leaned itself against Jaune as he unflinchingly faced it. And, not quite sure if he was safe or not, he unconsciously began to scoot back in place in his seated position, trying to keep some distance from the tense encounter.

So, with no real progress being made, Jaune was the first to act and using his newly awakened strength he shunted back the Grimm's paw with his shield and flung one side of its body back. Then, using his other free arm he was able to deliver a quick and shallow slice against the great Ursa, causing it to stumble back unsteadily onto its hind legs.

However, once its balanced was restored it twisted its body back to face Jaune and with its other fore-paw it swung forward towards Jaune, narrowly missing him and swinging over the young student as he rolled under the attack.

Kneeling in place, Jaune barely had enough time to catch a glimpse of the Grimm before it swung its other paw at Jaune once more, this one only meeting the red-leaf-entrenched ground as Jaune closely dodged the attack, jumping just in time to avoid it.

Though, stuck in the air as he was, Jaune could do nothing more than watch as the large Ursa swung back around and swiped at Jaune in the air, harshly tossing the young man onto the forested ground which surrounded them.

Rolling on his side with the fall, Jaune was able to use the momentum of the impact and righted himself on unsteady feet as he slowly came to a stop. Then, not giving the Grimm a moment's respite, he charged forward as soon as he could and daringly he leapt upwards in the hopes of catching the Grimm off-guard.

Unfortunately for Jaune, his first instinct proved to be wrong as the Grimm was ready to meet him and the Grimm leaned out of the boy's path and smacked a paw against the boy's back as he passed, sending him careening near one of the edges of the clearing.

Recovering from the fall, Jaune was already beginning to feel the wear that this battle was taking on him, already feeling shakiness begin to build in his limbs as he got up, his energy and endurance already being tested to their limit. Suddenly, a mental note from weeks prior echoed slightly in his mind and he remembered to look at the device on his wrist to check on his condition. Glancing at it, he could see that he was running on the last ebbs of Aura in his reservoir; the device displaying the integrity, or lack thereof, of his Aura with an alarmingly red, flashing marker.

Realizing that he only had one chance left, Jaune resolved himself in the face of this uncertain encounter and with no choice left other than to make this last charge count, he looked at the Grimm as it quickly stomped over towards him before it stopped a short distance in front of him, watching and awaiting the boy's next move.

Then, as the creature idly roared in place, Jaune charged forward fearlessly towards the Grimm and brought his sword up high and his shield out to cover his side. And in response, the Grimm charged forward as well, twisting one side of its body as it once more aimed to bring its claw mercilessly down towards the brave, young warrior.

Time seemed to slow as fury aimed to meet the soulless shadow before it, where in this single moment it seemed like either or both sides could succeed.

As the two forces prepared to meet in what would more than likely be their final clash, a shadowy energy seemed to be cast on one of them, adjusting the angle of one particular warrior's piece of equipment just the slightest bit before fading away once it was properly set in place, just in time to block a strike intended for its owner.

A shadowed paw swung down and was met only with the hardened, and perhaps enchanted, steel of an Arc-family shield, where it was stopped completely in its tracks, giving the owner behind it just enough time to make their critical move.

With the fight between him and the Grimm unexpectedly working out in his favor, Jaune didn't dwell on the moment any longer and with the opportunity given to him he moved forward to make the most of it while he still could.

Thus, placing a steadying foot on the ground for support, Jaune sprang upwards and in a feat of uncanny precision, in one smooth motion he swung his sword and effectively decapitated the great Grimm, the sound of slicing metal ringing out in the aftermath of the attack.

Then, as the Grimm's body crumpled to a heap, Jaune soundlessly collapsed his shield once more into its compact form before placing the item back on his belt. And as he watched the Grimm slowly begin to dissolve away Jaune coolly slid the blade of his sword back into its sheath once more with a metallic ring, the battle finally over and done with.

Cardin himself could only watch in mild awe and no small amount of embarrassment over having been saved by somebody who had only minutes before been at the receiving end of his own, ill-intended oppression. Now, seeing himself cowed into place by the other boy's defense of him, Cardin did nothing to escape the fate now encroaching upon him as he saw Jaune suddenly begin to make his way over towards him.

Jaune steadily closed the distance between him and Cardin until he stood only steps away from his former-tormentor. While Jaune himself wanted to let loose on Cardinal, whether it be verbal or physical or perhaps both, Jaune figured that the last few minutes were proof enough of his superiority over not just Team CRDL but Cardin himself and thus he decided to let his actions do most of the talking for him while he himself would get right to the point of the issue that now lingered dangerously between them.

Offering a hand to Cardin, the other boy took it and hauled himself up from his previous spot, cowering quietly on the ground since the battle had truly beging. Despite his otherwise subdued attitude, Cardin wasn't one to exactly show weakness and his attitude quickly returned back to its previously cocky standard with the first words to come out of his mouth.

"Holy crap, Jaune?" Cardin commented with no small amount of respect, an impressed smile present all the while as he said this.

Meanwhile, it was obvious to anyone that looked that Jaune was having none of it.

"Don't ever mess with my team, my… _friends_ , ever again." Jaune said, emphasizing the point by using their still clasped hands and brought Cardin several inches closer before once more backing off. The point driving itself home as Cardin's once confident smile turned uneasy with Jaune's deliberate and carefully-paced words.

And, with an intensity that no boy his age should have, Jaune maintained eye-contact with Cardin before making one last statement.

"Got it?"

And when Jaune got only a quietly intimidated look for his words, he wordlessly turned around and began to make his way back towards the rest of the forest, leaving Cardin behind to quietly mull over his departing words.

Now with the fight finally over and Cardin dealt with, Jaune could now begin to feel the effects of his waning Aura and the fading waves of his adrenaline finally begin to drain away from him, leaving only fatigue behind to replace it. Exhausted, Jaune only got to the edge of the clearing before he was forced to reach an arm out to brace himself as he slowly brought himself to lean against a nearby tree.

Taking long, deep breathes in an effort to gain back his strength, he tried to sort out his thoughts now that he was free of Cardin's grasp. With this small bit of time he was left with he began to wonder what he was going to say to his team once he got back-whether he should try and say something now when he got back to the rendezvous and just try to clear things up now as soon as possible or perhaps just wait until they were all safely back at the Academy and away from this dangerous place.

After a minute of thinking it over, in the end he decided it'd probably be better to just wait until they all got back to the safety of their dorms where he could finally rest and in the meantime he would try to think about what he would say to the person he hurt most of all in his admittedly selfish pursuit to try to figure himself out: Pyrrha. While he wasn't exactly sure what he could say that could make his cold treatment towards his team these recent weeks just suddenly go away, he was sure that whatever needed to be said had to, one-hundred percent, come right from the bottom of his heart if he had any hope of reaching them. At the moment, he figured he'd just play it by ear and try to figure things out as he went along; honestly, if worse-came-to-worst he wouldn't be above begging for their forgiveness at this point, not after all but abandoning them.

Let out a ragged breath at his decision, Jaune straightened out a bit more in his place beside the tree. While he was indeed ready to face whatever would come of him and his team when he got back, first he still needed the energy to get back to everybody without worrying about collapsing from exhaustion or anything like that along the way.

So, with nothing else to do but wait and breathe and think, Jaune just waited for his second wind to arrive; quietly, for the first time since he arrived with the rest of the class, he allowed himself the moment to just relax and looked up towards the unending cascade of red-leafed branches of the forest. While the sight was a bit more eerie than what one would expect from any other forest it did give off a certain, majestic charm and while he wasn't sure when, if ever, he would come back he was sure that the memory of this place would forever be ingrained into his memories, in one way or another.

"That was an incredible fight, Jaune. Your family would be proud." A voice calmly said, sounding almost right beside him as they spoke from the other end of the tree he was on.

Letting out perhaps the girliest shriek ever known to man, Jaune jumped nearly to the branches overhead in surprise. Now, with his heart beating a mile-a-minute and his adrenaline once more rushing its way back through his veins, Jaune turned away from the sight of the forest around him and turned an irritated glance towards the source of the voice.

"What- Where did you come from?!" He asked with no small amount of fright and agitation as he pushed himself away from the tree he had so comfortingly been resting against.

"I was around, just keeping an eye on things." Gabriel replied, his once-casual tone changing drastically with his next words, becoming hushed and distracted.

"Hey, sorry for the surprise. But, could you do me a favor real quick and just try not to make too much more noise. Please and thank you." He said, adding the last sentence almost as an afterthought.

"Wait, huh?" Jaune said, his attitude shifting from being upset and embarrassment to uncertain confusion. Carefully, he leaned around the tree to get a better look at his friend only to see him crouching and holding out his rifle towards the clearing he just left.

"Gabriel, what's going on?" He asked, switching his attention back and forth from looking at his classmate and looking towards the clearing, trying to figure out what was keeping his friend's attention.

Gabriel, still looking down the scope of his rifle, heard the comment but took an awkward amount of time to answer as his mind took far too much time to register what he'd been asked, his mind focused entirely too much on what was set in his crosshair in the distance.

"Oh, uhhh…" Gabriel sputtered awkwardly, recomposing himself after leaning slightly away from the scope for a second as he tried to come up with the answer while Jaune looked at him with a look of curiosity mixed with confusion.

"You see that Grimm at the other end of the clearing?" Gabriel asked, pulling his hand on the trigger of the gun away to point in the general direction ahead for a second before bringing it back to place.

Jaune, stalking forward towards Gabriel's side of the tree some more stood uneasily behind the other boy before looking uncertainly towards the direction he indicated. Bringing a hand up over his eyes to block the light of the sun hanging overhead, Jaune squinted his eyes to see what his friend had mentioned and after a couple of seconds of straining his eyes through the slight delirium from the exhaustion he was still getting over he could see the slight shape of something black and white in the far distance where the other end of the clearing became forest. From where they were, and also because of his condition, Jaune couldn't make anything else about the creature but from the basic shape he could gather he could tell it was a huge Grimm, not unlike the one he just took down minutes earlier; strangely, he noticed as he looked out into the clearing, was that Cardin himself was nowhere to be seen despite _just_ talking with him only what felt like just moments ago; it figures Cardin wouldn't stay in this place long after nearly being killed only to be humiliated by being saved by the class runt of all people. The irony was oddly a lot more satisfying than he thought it would have been and despite his still sour mood with everything a small laugh escaped his lips briefly before he remembered his friend's words and quieted himself once more. Idly, he started gazing out towards the Grimm's general shape, trying keep as much detail from it as he could from this distance, but at this distance it seemed like a lost cause.

"Umm, sort of. Kinda hard to tell from here, honestly." Jaune commented, taking his hand away from his eyes as he turned his gaze to look down at his friend.

"Right." Gabriel remarked in a quick, slightly tense tone. "Well, to be honest, that Grimm over there is one of the reasons why I'm here. You see, Professor Ozpin wanted me to hunt down these three Ursai who've been terrorizing this forest for a while. While they've only be a small nuisance until now, as long as people coming through the area stuck together, the Professor, seeing us go on this field trip all the way out here, figured that he could knock down two birds with one stone by sending me out here: Keep the rest of the students safe whilst also taking out a thorn that's been in his side for years. I don't know why he didn't have anybody else do it up until now, but I guess it doesn't really matter because now I'm here to deal with it." He paused, catching his breath. "Sorry for rambling. Anyway, don't mind me, I just wanted to thank you for taking out one of them for me. So, again, good work man and thanks for the help. Now, I think it's about time I took out this Ursa before I moved on to the last one. Also, you may want to cover your ears; unless you like having your ears ring."

At his words, Jaune suddenly perked up and in an instant hurriedly clamped both hands over his ears with a mild look of fright. Hearing the slight 'clap' Jaune's hands made as they met his head, Gabriel waited a couple more seconds just to make sure Jaune was prepared before he finally let his shot loose.

 **Boom!**

The high-caliber shot raced forward through the air, cutting easily through the distance between it and its target in moments. The bullet traveled noiselessly down the open expanse, traveling faster than even the sound it made as it left the barrel. In reality, it took only a moment and a half before it found itself buried into its target, the Grimm, which had previously been sniffing the air in search of food or perhaps its other lost brethren, suddenly jerked up and stood up on its hind legs in surprise a half second after the impact had happened before it stopped immediately after, where it then collapsed listlessly onto its back where it remained, unmoving.

Moments passed and both boys waited with bated breaths, waiting for any sort of sign that the Grimm had survived the direct shot. When only silence seemed to answer them both began to feel uneasy about the situation before the Grimm suddenly jerked once then stilled once more. Then, smoke began to rise off of it and its body slowly began to dissolve away.

As they watched the brief scene finally reach its end, both boys finally let out the breaths they'd unconsciously been holding in with an audible sigh and both finally relaxed in their spots. With the stressful moment over, Jaune took his hands off his ears while Gabriel relaxed his aim and used his left arm to push himself up from kneeling, letting out another breathy sigh from the effort of the action.

Now that he'd gotten up, Gabriel turned around back to Jaune as the other boy stared at him with no small amount of awe at the impressive shot.

Waving a hand forth, Jaune opened his mouth a couple of times to try to say something but remained speechless for a few moments before he just finally let out:

"Wow… that was really just, wow. Nice shot." Jaune acknowledged, waving a hand towards his friend, an impressed smile on his face.

Almost blushing at the praise, Gabriel shifted slightly in place as he looked down towards the ground awkwardly. Kicking the ground lightly, Gabriel turned back to look back at Jaune, an uncontainable smile on his face.

"Geez. Thanks, Jaune. Really, it was nothing. But… thanks again anyway." Gabriel said before letting his sense of pride settle a bit and with just a slight smile he continued. "Well. I should probably let you get back to-"

A roar right beside them rang out and the color on the faces of both boys drained away along with their smiles.

Jaune only had the time to turn his head left where a claw already raced to meet him. He didn't have time to move, time to think nor time to act. All he could do in that moment was watch and blink as white claws moved further and further to carve out his eyes along with the rest of his face and he was useless to stop it, seemingly frozen in this instant of life he probably had left.

Then, somehow, at the very last instance possible, Jaune saw Gabriel slide in front of him, arms holding his gun out in front of him in an attempt to block both Jaune and himself from the Grimm's white-clawed paw as it inched closer and closer.

And suddenly, the Grimm's clawed paw met the gun and the weapon was bent backwards towards them before the sound of metal being peeled apart was heard. A moment later, a quick, small explosion was heard as a red, billowy cloud of smoke erupted out from the center of the weapon as the Dust-crystal powering the weapon was cracked apart, causing the gun to shatter into a countless number of pieces.

Jaune's eyes flinched in surprise at the sound and he could only watch as Gabriel was then, with no weapon to shield him, slammed into the ground himself as the great Ursa-Grimm's claw punched right through the weapon's explosion and into him. Jaune turned to look towards the cloud of dust marking where his friend once stood before he focused back onto the Grimm. Now that he could see it up close, it easily seemed to dwarf the last Grimm, this one almost seeming to be half a size larger, and though his odds seemed even more hopeless now in the face of this massive Ursa, running away was the last thing on his mind and there was no way he was going to let this Grimm get away with hurting one of the first friends he's made since he left home. And so, infuriated, Jaune pulled out his sword from its sheath along with his shield, the latter making a sudden metal 'clacking' as it expanded back into its open form, and he braced himself to face the Grimm as it now stared right at him.

Jaune got into his stance, getting ready to take a step forward to charge and leap towards the Grimm. Though, even now, he could feel the immense exhaustion in his limbs as he tried to keep a hold of his own weapons; even now he was unsure if he could even block a single, solid hit from the Ursa but he was willing to risk it anyway.

The Grimm in response shifted forward, prepared to launch an attack on the Huntsman-to-be, and took a step forward.

Then, it immediately stopped. And its head slipped clean off falling forward with a heavy thud onto the forested ground below.

Beside it, Gabriel seemed to materialize into place, holding his scythe over one shoulder, both hands at the base of the weapon's pole as he seemed to yank the weapon over his back, much in the same way somebody would try to bring a heavy sledgehammer from behind their back and over their shoulder and towards the front of them. Though, Gabriel seemed to stop halfway through the whole motion and instead just let _Crescent Eclipse_ rest over the back of his right shoulder once its task was finished, letting his left hand swing down and rest listlessly against his side while his pocket-watch dangled perilously by the chain still held in his grip. And there, he remained unmoving, the Grimm already beginning to disintegrate and sputter away into the darkness from which it was created.

Lowering his weapons from their once-ready grip, Jaune looked at the lingering form of Gabriel as he silently brought his left hand up and towards his chest and seemed to place the pocket-watch back into his cloak; Jaune only being able to guess at this since Gabriel was faced away from him at the moment. Unsure of exactly how his friend was feeling, Jaune quietly slid his sword back into its sheath and as he took his shield off his arm and began to compact it he took a step towards Gabriel, cautiously reaching a hand forward to reach out towards him.

"Hey, Gabe. You okay-"

Suddenly, Gabriel's left hand swung out from the front of his body, one of his pistols in hand, and turned to the side, where he then aimed the gun and fired.

'Bang. Bang. Bang.' Shot after shot rang out through the air, echoing out from the edge of the clearing and into the area of the forest all around for any and all to hear.

"Hey, Gabriel! Calm down! What are you doing?!" Jaune said, jogging over as he tried to hurry over to reach his friend at the sudden turn of events.

Some feet in front of Jaune, Gabriel had turned to the side and in a display of cold, unbridled fury fired round after unceasing round into the slowly disappearing form of the Grimm. With each and every bullet its body would shift ever-slightly, yet offer nothing more to appease his sudden rage.

"You! Piece! Of!-" Gabriel said, pausing mid-sentence and mid-barrage only to let out an agitated yell before he continued to release the rest of the magazine into the decaying fiend.

Running over, Jaune finally reached his friend where he then gripped Gabriel's shoulder and wrist in an effort to get his attention.

"Gabriel! Stop it! It's dead!" Jaune said, looking at his friend with a worried look as he tried to calm the other boy down and get him to stop.

As the sound of clicking met their ears, Gabriel, after a few futile moments of pulling the trigger and nothing more coming of it, turned to the side once he finally noticed the hands gripping his wrist and shoulder and in an angered rush turned to look at the person over his right shoulder. At the sight of a visibly unsettled Jaune, Gabriel's eyes remained unfocused for a moment longer before they immediately softened as he slowly but steadily seemed to simmer down. Then, with an unsteady tremble, Gabriel's arm lowered once more to rest at his side. Suddenly, as if now just suddenly recalling Jaune's words, he turned back to look in front of him and came to the sight of the quickly-decaying pile of darkness which once served as the body of the Grimm just moments ago. At the sight, Gabriel then just closed his eyes, took a deep breath in and let it out with a noticeable exhale where he then seemed to hunch visibly in place.

Jaune, seeing the sudden change in posture, slowly inched his arms away but still kept a worried gaze on his friend all the while. It was less out of the idea of him personally being injured by anything his friend might do and more along the lines of just making sure Gabriel didn't do anything else that might end up being a little self-destructive.

"Gabriel, hey. You gonna be okay?" Jaune asked in a quiet voice, slowly leaning forward around the other boy's shoulder to get a better look at his face as he tried to speak with him.

A moment of silence met him which was then followed by an audible exhale once more. Opening his eyes, Gabriel turned to look at Jaune from the edge of his vision but not yet ready to fully face him in the wake of his embarrassingly emotional display.

"Yeah… Yeah, I'll be okay." Gabriel said with a voice a hair's breadth above a whisper. And from the tone of it, he just sounded completely and utterly tired.

"Are you sure? I mean, you were looking pretty rough there for a minute." Jaune said, following the comment with an unsure shrug of his shoulder to emphasis the point. Honestly, Jaune was kind of scared for him, wondering just what kind of temper his friend really had lying under that nearly-seamless calm exterior he liked to keep.

Sighing once more at Jaune's words, Gabriel closed his eyes briefly before he gently brought his arm up and put the pistol away into his cloak once more. Once that was done, he slowly opened his eyes and with a languid grace turned to fully face Jaune.

"Yes, Jaune. I know… And I'm sorry you had to see that. I just… my-"

Then, waving a hand around, indicating the spot where the rifle had cracked apart and exploded into a cloud of heated dust just moments ago. Jaune could only shake his head dejectedly at the memory as he turned back to look at Gabriel as he resumed speaking.

"-Wow, I don't even want to say 'gun' because that would be such an injustice. Really, it was… it was a gift. I mean, I didn't even have it that long and now I don't even know how I'm…"

Gabriel's voice wavered as his head shook at the thought, where all he could do was just stare in disbelief at what'd just happened. He honestly couldn't even get the words out; there weren't any, not for the myriad of emotions he was feeling at that moment.

The picture of his friend just looking so helpless right then and there, Jaune honestly didn't know what to say to his friend that could make this situation any better. Truthfully, there probably wasn't anything that he could say that could just fix whatever Gabriel was feeling right then. Still, he had to say something; he couldn't just leave him out here all alone to despair in the open, not with all the Grimm still lurking about and ready to pounce on them at any given moment.

"Gabriel, I'm sorry. But, come on. We need to get going before we miss the rendezvous. Please, come on. Gabriel..."

Gabriel stood still for another moment, just looking down towards the ground silently, seemingly stuck in thought on something before he suddenly straightened up. Nodding wordlessly, Gabriel placed the deactivated staff of his scythe onto his back, momentarily just taking a deep breath to try to calm himself down, or rather just compose himself lest he break down right then and there.

Jaune, watching his friend take a moment to himself, silently just waited on Gabriel so that they could make their way back to the rest of their friends and company.

Then, after a couple of long moments, Gabriel unhurriedly began walking forward until finally he was beside Jaune and already began to walk past him. Jaune then turned to follow along beside him, a somber mood seemingly shared between them at the sudden, unfortunate turn of events.

Then, with only the retreating sound of their footfalls upon the red leaves blanketing the forest floor marking their leave, that itself soon faded away entirely as well moments later.

And the Forest of Forever Fall was left in complete and total quiet once more.

* * *

 **(Later, Beacon Academy)**

The sound of quiet sizzling and searing filled the air, accompanied only by the slight smokiness as food was being cooked in the small kitchen. While the room was usually reserved for use by a few select people at a time, the two people currently handling things on the stove-top were working at full-capacity to meet the insatiable demands of not an awaiting, insatiable crowd but rather the insatiable appetite of one orange-haired girl in particular.

"Hey, Ren! We're out of syrup!" The girl said, slurping up an entire pancake into her already puffed-out cheeks with an ease that made it seem like the food was made seemingly out of air rather than instant-ready pancake batter.

"That's because you drank it all before we got here, Nora." A calm voice retorted, the person behind it steadily at work beside somebody else as they hurried to get the food ready for the rest of their group while keep the young Valkyrie's appetite in check.

"Ooohhh, riiiigghht. Silly me!" She said, audibly bopping herself on the head in the background, causing the two working at the stove to smile at the sound. The both of them glanced at each with a conspiratorial look in their eyes as they seemed to share the same thought at the girl's ditsy behavior before turning their attention back towards their task.

"So, are you guys done yet?" The girl asked, slurping up yet another fluffy, cloud-soft pancake from one of the few mountains of pancakes laid out on the kitchen's island counter set between her and the two cooks.

"Almost." That same voice as earlier answered. "Hey, Nora. Could you bring us out another couple of plates to set out the rest of these pancakes on?" To accentuate the point, Ren raised the pan he was using at the moment to cook up one of said fluffy pieces of goodness while indiscreetly pointing it towards a miniature tower of pancakes settled on one of the other, unused sections of the stove.

"Sure thing!" She responded bubbly, hopping up from her seat along the counter and pranced over towards one of the nearby cupboards to find the much-needed dishware.

"So," The quiet voice of Ren asked, turning towards the other person working on the stove beside them. "Why exactly did you want to come over and help out with this? It's not anything too exciting, and, not to be rude, but we barely even hang out. So, I was just curious why you would come over now of all times?" He asked, turning a quiet eye over to look towards their reticent guest while keeping some focus on the task of making sure the pancakes didn't burn.

Meanwhile, the other person quietly just continued to keep an eye on their share of the food, keeping much the same amount of attention on their task as Ren was while quietly thinking on their own answer to his question. Finally, he spoke up.

"Well, to be honest, I wanted to see how things were going to go with Jaune now that things have settled down. I know it really isn't any of my business what goes on with your team but he's still my friend so I just want to keep an eye on him for a little longer to make sure he's going to be okay."

"Why wouldn't he be, Gabriel? After what Pyrrha told us about what happened back at the forest of Forever Fall we already understood where his loyalties ultimately lied and that he apparently seemed to learn his lesson. Truthfully, I think that's why Pyrrha went out there with him: to find out: to see how he was faring after everything that happened. In my opinion, I think it's already worked itself out by now."

"Really?" He asked, flipping over another pancake once it was finally golden and turned to look at Ren.

"Uh-huh." Ren said as he moved over another completed pancake and onto the ever-growing pile the two were working on.

"And what makes you say that?"

"That." Ren said simply, pointing the spatula over his left shoulder behind him to the darkened hall before bringing it back in front of him as he prepared to cook up another pancake for the stack.

At the motion, Gabriel turned his attention to the referred corridor and through the shadowy hall he got a glimpse of two vague shapes moving through darkness towards the illuminated kitchen the three were in.

"… You need to tell me how you do that sometime…" Gabriel remarked, keeping an eye on the hallway as the two figures seemed to stroll ever-nearer.

Ren just merely shrugged at the comment and kept his attention on the sizzling batter in front of him.

"Hey, guys! I heard somebody was making pancakes?" A voice said from the darkened hall, which, as the person finally stepped into the light of the room, revealed itself to be Jaune, who was followed closely by a pleased yet sweat-drenched Pyrrha. And, now that he looked more closely, Jaune looked to be in much the same state as well, perhaps even more saturated and exhausted than Pyrrha was.

"Hi guys!" Nora said as she stood on one of the stools in the room as she continued to try to reach and get more plates for the group and now with everybody here she needed to get even more from deeper in the cabinet so that everybody else could have something to actually eat on. Then, there was also the issue of sorting out how many forks and knives were going to be needed and then there was the issue with the syrup and then…

"Yeah, hey guys! Nice to have you both back! It seems like you two worked things out together. From the looks of it you two look like you did more than just talk things out." Gabriel commented, turning to look at them over his shoulder as he waved his own spatula around and placed it back down to place another pancake onto the two cook's shared pile.

At the comment, Jaune only gave him a look of utter confusion before pushing aside the comment a moment later with an unconcerned shrug. Meanwhile, Pyrrha herself seemed to have steam blowing out of her ears with the way she was blushing. Though, it seemed neither was willing to comment on it, whether they picked up on the unsubtle innuendo or not.

"Yeah, Pyrrha ran me ragged trying to get me back into working shape. She's a terrific teacher!" Jaune commented, and though it seemed impossible, Pyrrha's blush seemed to deepen perhaps the slightest bit more and Gabriel began to worry that the poor girl was going to pass out.

"Really? How well do you think you did so far?" He asked, keep an amused but equally concerned look at the reddening girl.

"Well, you know me. Of course it went off without a hitch and, not to toot my own horn any more than usual, I'm pretty sure I passed it with flying colors." He boasted, jabbing a thumb into his chest as it inflated confidently.

Beside him, Pyrrha said nothing. Though, fortunately, her blushing seemed to lessen as the moments passed on by.

Gabriel chuckled to himself as he listened to him. While he knew Jaune was laying the praise on himself a little bit thick he wasn't going to take this time of reconciliation away from him. It'd been stressful enough for the both of them as it was, he didn't need to be a party-pooper on top of that so he let the comments be.

"Of course, of course. I know, we got a big shot over here. Still, I'm glad to see that the two of you are finally getting along once again after so long. I could actually feel the chill whenever you two walked past each other in the halls these last few weeks, y'know? I was actually really starting to get worried."

"Yeah, me too." Jaune stated, rubbing the hair on the back of his head exasperatedly as his smile faded away along with Pyrrha's blush. "But, hey, that's all behind us, right? So, come on, I heard Ren was making pancakes. Though, I didn't know you would be here too."

"Surprise!" Gabriel said, bringing out both hands into the air in mock-celebration and giving them a smile before turning back to his work as he tried to finish off the last of his batch. "Well, like I told Ren, I just wanted to come here and see how things were gonna turn out with you and your team and try to help out however I could, if it really came down to it. But, from what I've heard and seen, it seems like you all are already working through it." He said, talking to them over his shoulder while he continued to work.

Sighing to himself at the memory of his talk with Pyrrha and the memories of the weeks leading up to it with Cardin, Jaune knew he could only blame himself for what happened he was glad that his conversation with Pyrrha showed that he was still able to be forgiven despite it all.

"Yeah, though at first I honestly didn't believe I deserved to be forgiven for what I did. And I don't know why but they somehow found it in their hearts to forgive me and now it's up to me to make it up to them by being the best leader that I can be for our team. So, thank you, all of you." Jaune said, turning his head to look at all the members of JNPR as both he and Pyrrha took a seat on the island of the kitchen.

"Well, duh! Of course we forgive you!" Nora said as she finally gathered all the needed plates for the group to use, jumping off her heightened stool and landing on the ground with an audible clatter as the plates clinked together in her hands before she set them on the island-counter besides the mountainous piles of pancakes. "So stop being a dummy, dummy!" Nora said as she bopped Jaune on the nose, causing him to reach a hand up to his nose in surprise. "And just come to us the next time something starts going wrong, alright?"

Looking at her with an eternally grateful look, Jaune looked at her as tears started to gather in his eyes at her words.

"Yes, of course. I promise." Jaune answered, giving her a more genuine smile than he felt he's shown in a long time. Far too long.

"Great! Now come on, let's eat!" And with that, after digging out a knife and fork from out of thin air- she claimed half of one of the ascending pile of pancakes and began to shovel entire sections of it into her gaping maw and crushing them into her now chipmunk-like cheeks with a voracity that would surprise even the Grimm.

Laughing at her sudden change in focus, Pyrrha and Jaune went to follow Nora's example and reached forward to grab their own plates and utensils and placed a few pancakes of their own onto their own plates before Nora decided to take their share as well. Meanwhile, Ren and Gabriel finished cooking up the last of the pancake batter in the kitchen and quickly placed their dirtied dishes into the sink and placed back whatever else they used to make the meal and once they were finished they turned back to the counter at the center of the kitchen and took their own seats across from Jaune and Pyrrha and gathered their own plates of food while Nora continued to practically vacuum up all her own food with a smile.

Smiling at his teammate's dinnertime mood, Jaune absently began reaching for something before looking around the table for one thing in particular.

"Hey, guys. Where's the syrup?" He asked, looking past everybody and towards the various edges and other counters of the kitchen for the missing ingredient to his, and evidently everybody else's, meal.

"Don't you remember? I mentioned that Nora kind of ate it all before we got back from the trip." Pyrrha stated, looking towards Jaune with a look of slight regret at the inconvenience.

"Oh, yeah, that's right." Jaune said in realization. Then, sagging back into his chair, he brought up both hands to his face and let out a disappointed groan. "Oh well, I guess I can try and eat it as is. But it's just not the same-"

"Here you go, Jaune. Oh, and here Nora, catch!" Gabriel interrupted, handing one large jar of the reddened-syrup-sap from the Forest of Forever Fall while he tossed another of the large, glass container towards Nora. Though, the throw was a bit too high and she fell back trying to catch it. Everybody was about to get up to check on her before a loud "Aha!" was shouted into the air, followed closely by the sound of guzzling as the orange-haired girl began to loudly chug the contents of her jar. After a quick laugh, they settled back into their seats and relaxed as they went back to enjoying their meals.

Drizzling some of the sticky substance over his own meal and then passing it over to Pyrrha, Jaune turned to look back up at Gabriel while he absently began to spread the stuff over his food.

"Hey, Gabe. Where did you get this stuff? I didn't see you bring any over when we were coming back from Forever Fall." He asked, a slight tone of skepticism marking his words.

"Magic." He answered, setting down his own utensils as he waved his fingers at Jaune in what was supposed to be mock-mysteriousness and gave him a smile as he helped pass the jar of syrup over from Pyrrha to Ren once she had finished using it. "Sorry, just a bit of an inside joke. Don't worry about it, Jaune. Just be glad I was able to get enough to distract Nora with and still have some for ourselves." He said, giving Jaune a disarming smile before beginning to cut into his own small stack while he waited on Ren to finish pouring his own desired amount.

Jaune only gave him a confused stare before shrugging his shoulders. In all fairness, he wasn't even sure why he asked in the first place, aside from just being innately curious about it since he hadn't noticed it at first. 'Well, whatever.' he figured. Gift horses and all that.

Suddenly, Nora let out a thunderous belch, followed by a satisfied groan along with the slight tinkle of a glass jar rolling slowly across a tiled floor.

And immediately, everyone laughed once more, the roaring sound easily filling the small space of the isolated kitchen.

And just like that, all the day's worries and questions ceased to matter and the only thing that seemed to matter right then and there was each other's company.

* * *

 **A/N: Now, to answer the question I postponed to this chapter about the long gap between the last chapter and the one before it…**

… **Well, simply, there were a lot of rewrites where I ended up getting rid of a lot of good parts and sections. And if you're writer, that gets pretty demoralizing; having to redo entire, well-invested and decent parts in order to better fit a story or just plain because it doesn't make sense, character motivation-wise. I don't know, maybe I'll bring one or two of them back in the future when it seems more appropriate.** _ **If**_ **it seems more appropriate, I should say.**

 **Anyway, I'll try to work past self-imposed obstacles in the future and try not to keep the story waiting in stagnation and blah, blah, blah, big words.**

 **TLDR; I'll try to hurry up with posting subsequent chapters as quick as I can in the future. So, here's hoping all goes well. Feel free to leave a nice review or favorite if you're feeling generous, please.**

 **And also, I wish to thank you all for taking the time to check out this story, for whatever reason. I hope that someday, if I haven't already...somehow, I'll be able to impress you all with my humble story. ^-^**

 **This is The Brutal Legend, logging off and signing out.**


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